PROFILE OF STAN KUCZAJ

Stan Kuczaj received a bachelor's (1972) in psychology from the University of Texas and a doctorate (1976) in child psychology from the University of Minnesota. He has held academic positions at Oxford University, Southern Methodist University, the University of Hawaii, and the University of Minnesota, and is currently professor and chair of the Department of Psychology at The University of Southern Mississippi. His research interests focus on developmental issues in young children and marine mammals. Although this may seem like an odd combination, Dr. Kuczaj believes that it is important to place human cognition and human development in an evolutionary context. In order to do so, it is necessary to understand the behavior and capabilities of other species. His current work focuses on the ontogeny of echolocation clicks in dolphin calves, the ontogeny and organization of social behavior (including communication) in cetaceans, and problem solving in dolphins, sea lions and whales.

Dr. Kuczaj won a Young Scientist Award (1980) from the American Psychological Association for his work on child language development, and an Excellence in Basic Research Award (2002) from The University of Southern Mississippi for his research on dolphin cognition and behavior. He is a founding fellow of the American Psychological Society, a founding member of the Comparative Cognition Society, and a fellow of the American Psychological Association. He is also a member of numerous professional organizations, including the American Acoustical Society, the Animal Behavior Society, and the Society for Marine Mammalogy. He serves as the faculty adviser for the local student chapter of the Society for Marine Mammalogy, and has just begun a term as associate editor of the British Journal of Developmental Psychology.