It’s not often that a boy from a small town in Texas gets to become a renowned Harvard professor, but Irven Devore is one who was able to do this. His preparation for the academic world began at the University of Texas where he received his BA degree in philosophy and anthropology. He furthered his professional interests later by graduating from the University of Chicago with an MA degree and a PhD in anthropology.
After his university student days, Devore was able to make several important contributions to the discipline of anthropology not only by his extensive and interesting research concerns but also by other responsibilities associated with the academic profession. He is the recipient of impressive academic rewards and fellowships and has had the honor of being selected to participate in several professional organizations. Although he has served at Harvard as a professor and as chairman of the anthropology department, Devore has also lectured at a number of other prominent educational institutions, such as Stanford University and the University of California at Berkeley. A casual perusal of his impressive résumé makes one readily understand why he has such a prominent reputation in the field of anthropology.
His research interests have focused on animal behavior. In particular, he has focused on what we can learn from the behavior of monkeys and apes.
Understandably, in order to conduct his research, Professor Devore has engaged in numerous field studies, which provided him with important insights about the subjects of his research. As a result of his research, he has produced a number of interesting articles, with titles such as the “Social Behavior of Baboons and Early Man,” “The Evolution of Social Life,” and “The Natural Superiority of Women.” He is also the author of various scholarly books concerning his special interests within the discipline of anthropology.
After a long and productive scholarly career, he is presently continuing to make important contributions to the discipline of anthropology by serving as the curator at the Harvard University Peabody Museum. Hence, we can expect to hear more about his interests as time goes by.
References:
- DeVore, I. (Ed.). (1965). Primate behavior: Field studies of monkeys and apes. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston.
- DeVore, I., & Eimerl, S. (1965). The primates. New York: Life Natural Library, Time.
- DeVore, I., & Lee, R. B. (Eds.). (1968). Man the hunter. Chicago: Aldine.
- DeVore, I., & Lee, R. B. (Eds.). (1976). Kalahari hunter-gatherers. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.