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Ed Gantt

I am currently interested in critically analyzing naturalistic accounts of human action in contemporary psychology. Thus, I am interested in (1) identifying the (often) hidden philosophical assumptions of materialism, determinism, reductionism, and egoism in mainstream psychological theories; (2) examining the implications of those assumptions for psychological theory and practice; and (3) articulating viable, alternative approaches to accounting for human action that preserve moral agency and meaning. More specifically, my recent work looks to (1) evaluate evolutionary psychological accounts of religion and religious phenomena; (2) explore the nature of the interface between religion and science; and (3) articulate possible avenues for reconceptualizing psychological science, human action (generally), and religious experience (specifically)—for example, reconceptualizing via the ethical phenomenology of Emmanuel Levinas and other phenomenological philosophers and psychologists.