A word from the special guest speaker: From weddings to college graduations and from prayers to painful fire-walking ceremonies, ritual is everywhere. At first glance, such activities might seem pointless. So why do we all engage in them? Anthropologists have long proposed that rituals persist because they convey certain benefits to their practitioners and their communities. But how can we study these ostensible benefits, given the contextually sensitive nature of cultural practices? In this talk, I will present an interdisciplinary research program that combines laboratory and field methods to explore the puzzle of ritual in real-life settings, from some of the most mundane to some of the most extraordinary rituals in the world. Drawing upon my findings, I will also explore the implications for other domains, like sports, entertainment, and politics.

RSVP to join guest speaker, Dimitris Xygalatas