Alexander Schakowski
@alexschakowski.bsky.social
Postdoctoral Fellow at MPI for Human Development, Berlin. Interested in human foraging, social decision-making, and collective intelligence.
Pinned
www.science.org
Very happy to see our ice-fishing paper on the cover of @science.org this week! 🎣🎉
We tracked large groups of Finnish competitive ice-fishers to study how social foragers use social information when searching for resources. 🐟
Link: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... (contact me for open access)
We tracked large groups of Finnish competitive ice-fishers to study how social foragers use social information when searching for resources. 🐟
Link: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... (contact me for open access)
Reposted by Alexander Schakowski
Across seven incentivized experiments and a large reanalysis, we systematically manipulated the presence and type of post-choice feedback in repeated risky decisions to test whether feedback shapes behavior through learning mechanisms or through anticipatory changes in preferences.
February 5, 2026 at 12:53 PM
Across seven incentivized experiments and a large reanalysis, we systematically manipulated the presence and type of post-choice feedback in repeated risky decisions to test whether feedback shapes behavior through learning mechanisms or through anticipatory changes in preferences.
Reposted by Alexander Schakowski
🚨WINNER ANNOUNCEMET🚨
EHBEA wants to congratulate @drboothroyd.bsky.social and @sheinalew.bsky.social on earning the 2026 EHBEA Award in Excellence in Public Communication and Outreach👏
@durhampsych.bsky.social
@durham.ac.uk
EHBEA wants to congratulate @drboothroyd.bsky.social and @sheinalew.bsky.social on earning the 2026 EHBEA Award in Excellence in Public Communication and Outreach👏
@durhampsych.bsky.social
@durham.ac.uk
February 3, 2026 at 4:18 PM
🚨WINNER ANNOUNCEMET🚨
EHBEA wants to congratulate @drboothroyd.bsky.social and @sheinalew.bsky.social on earning the 2026 EHBEA Award in Excellence in Public Communication and Outreach👏
@durhampsych.bsky.social
@durham.ac.uk
EHBEA wants to congratulate @drboothroyd.bsky.social and @sheinalew.bsky.social on earning the 2026 EHBEA Award in Excellence in Public Communication and Outreach👏
@durhampsych.bsky.social
@durham.ac.uk
Reposted by Alexander Schakowski
Very happy that @PNASNews agreed to publish our (w/ @romanececchi.bsky.social) response to Prakhar's thought-provoking study! You can find the final version at the link below. See the following tweet for Prakhar's response to our response. Happy to hear your thoughts!
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
February 3, 2026 at 8:41 PM
Very happy that @PNASNews agreed to publish our (w/ @romanececchi.bsky.social) response to Prakhar's thought-provoking study! You can find the final version at the link below. See the following tweet for Prakhar's response to our response. Happy to hear your thoughts!
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Reposted by Alexander Schakowski
Big news: I started a new position as Professor for Computational Social Science (W1 tenure track) at the Center for Critical Computational Studies (C3S) at Goethe University in Frankfurt am Main!
www.c3s-frankfurt.de/who-we-are#m...
www.c3s-frankfurt.de/who-we-are#m...
Who we are - Center for critical computational studies
www.c3s-frankfurt.de
February 2, 2026 at 3:35 PM
Big news: I started a new position as Professor for Computational Social Science (W1 tenure track) at the Center for Critical Computational Studies (C3S) at Goethe University in Frankfurt am Main!
www.c3s-frankfurt.de/who-we-are#m...
www.c3s-frankfurt.de/who-we-are#m...
Reposted by Alexander Schakowski
Recurring Crises in Psychology
"The current responses to the replication crisis, although valuable, are not ultimate solutions because they deflect fundamental questions and postpone the reconsideration of the ideals of psychology as a science."
Open Access: doi.org/10.1177/1089...
"The current responses to the replication crisis, although valuable, are not ultimate solutions because they deflect fundamental questions and postpone the reconsideration of the ideals of psychology as a science."
Open Access: doi.org/10.1177/1089...
February 1, 2026 at 8:24 AM
Recurring Crises in Psychology
"The current responses to the replication crisis, although valuable, are not ultimate solutions because they deflect fundamental questions and postpone the reconsideration of the ideals of psychology as a science."
Open Access: doi.org/10.1177/1089...
"The current responses to the replication crisis, although valuable, are not ultimate solutions because they deflect fundamental questions and postpone the reconsideration of the ideals of psychology as a science."
Open Access: doi.org/10.1177/1089...
Reposted by Alexander Schakowski
#JNeurosci: Results from Hall-McMaster, @nicoschuck.bsky.social, @gershbrain.bsky.social et al suggest the entorhinal cortex might highlight aspects of past experiences that can be generalized, allowing us to make effective decisions in new environments https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.1492-25.2025
January 30, 2026 at 2:25 PM
#JNeurosci: Results from Hall-McMaster, @nicoschuck.bsky.social, @gershbrain.bsky.social et al suggest the entorhinal cortex might highlight aspects of past experiences that can be generalized, allowing us to make effective decisions in new environments https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.1492-25.2025
Reposted by Alexander Schakowski
🚨 New Paper Alert!
We investigated the developmental trajectories of intra-ethnic and inter-ethnic social norm acquisition among BaYaka and Bandongo in northern Rep. Congo, a community where inter-ethnic cooperation is common. We found that...
journals.plos.org/plosone/arti...
We investigated the developmental trajectories of intra-ethnic and inter-ethnic social norm acquisition among BaYaka and Bandongo in northern Rep. Congo, a community where inter-ethnic cooperation is common. We found that...
journals.plos.org/plosone/arti...
The social learning and development of intra- and inter-ethnic sharing norms in the Congo Basin
Compared to other species, the extent of human cooperation is unparalleled. Such cooperation is coordinated between community members via social norms. Developmental research has demonstrated that ver...
journals.plos.org
January 29, 2026 at 10:36 AM
🚨 New Paper Alert!
We investigated the developmental trajectories of intra-ethnic and inter-ethnic social norm acquisition among BaYaka and Bandongo in northern Rep. Congo, a community where inter-ethnic cooperation is common. We found that...
journals.plos.org/plosone/arti...
We investigated the developmental trajectories of intra-ethnic and inter-ethnic social norm acquisition among BaYaka and Bandongo in northern Rep. Congo, a community where inter-ethnic cooperation is common. We found that...
journals.plos.org/plosone/arti...
Reposted by Alexander Schakowski
So great to see this published now! Have been a big fan of the ice-fishing project all along, by @alexschakowski.bsky.social @ralfkurvers.bsky.social and many others! 👏👇
❄️🎣 What ice-fishing competitions reveal about human decision-making. New paper in @science.org by researchers from @mpib-berlin.bsky.social, @scioi.bsky.social, and the University of Eastern Finland.
👉 Read more: www.mpib-berlin.mpg.de/newsroom/new...
📄 Paper: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
👉 Read more: www.mpib-berlin.mpg.de/newsroom/new...
📄 Paper: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
January 29, 2026 at 9:37 PM
So great to see this published now! Have been a big fan of the ice-fishing project all along, by @alexschakowski.bsky.social @ralfkurvers.bsky.social and many others! 👏👇
Reposted by Alexander Schakowski
❄️🎣 What ice-fishing competitions reveal about human decision-making. New paper in @science.org by researchers from @mpib-berlin.bsky.social, @scioi.bsky.social, and the University of Eastern Finland.
👉 Read more: www.mpib-berlin.mpg.de/newsroom/new...
📄 Paper: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
👉 Read more: www.mpib-berlin.mpg.de/newsroom/new...
📄 Paper: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
January 29, 2026 at 7:32 PM
❄️🎣 What ice-fishing competitions reveal about human decision-making. New paper in @science.org by researchers from @mpib-berlin.bsky.social, @scioi.bsky.social, and the University of Eastern Finland.
👉 Read more: www.mpib-berlin.mpg.de/newsroom/new...
📄 Paper: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
👉 Read more: www.mpib-berlin.mpg.de/newsroom/new...
📄 Paper: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Very happy to see our ice-fishing paper on the cover of @science.org this week! 🎣🎉
We tracked large groups of Finnish competitive ice-fishers to study how social foragers use social information when searching for resources. 🐟
Link: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... (contact me for open access)
We tracked large groups of Finnish competitive ice-fishers to study how social foragers use social information when searching for resources. 🐟
Link: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... (contact me for open access)
www.science.org
January 30, 2026 at 12:36 PM
Very happy to see our ice-fishing paper on the cover of @science.org this week! 🎣🎉
We tracked large groups of Finnish competitive ice-fishers to study how social foragers use social information when searching for resources. 🐟
Link: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... (contact me for open access)
We tracked large groups of Finnish competitive ice-fishers to study how social foragers use social information when searching for resources. 🐟
Link: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... (contact me for open access)
Reposted by Alexander Schakowski
New paper out in @animalecology.bsky.social: Social information about others' affective states in a human-altered world. Link: besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
With @jackdawjordan.bsky.social, @margauxvanhussel.bsky.social, Mike Mendl, and @cornishjackdaws.bsky.social
With @jackdawjordan.bsky.social, @margauxvanhussel.bsky.social, Mike Mendl, and @cornishjackdaws.bsky.social
January 22, 2026 at 1:51 PM
New paper out in @animalecology.bsky.social: Social information about others' affective states in a human-altered world. Link: besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
With @jackdawjordan.bsky.social, @margauxvanhussel.bsky.social, Mike Mendl, and @cornishjackdaws.bsky.social
With @jackdawjordan.bsky.social, @margauxvanhussel.bsky.social, Mike Mendl, and @cornishjackdaws.bsky.social
Reposted by Alexander Schakowski
"The relationship between childhood exploration and population-level innovation in cultural evolution" with @ndersen.bsky.social @sheinalew.bsky.social @felixthehauskat.bsky.social out in Proc B
royalsocietypublishing.org/rspb/article...
royalsocietypublishing.org/rspb/article...
The relationship between childhood exploration and population-level innovation in cultural evolution
Abstract. The societal effects of children’s learning in cultural evolution have been underexplored. Here, we investigate using agent-based models how a pr
royalsocietypublishing.org
January 22, 2026 at 1:01 PM
"The relationship between childhood exploration and population-level innovation in cultural evolution" with @ndersen.bsky.social @sheinalew.bsky.social @felixthehauskat.bsky.social out in Proc B
royalsocietypublishing.org/rspb/article...
royalsocietypublishing.org/rspb/article...
Reposted by Alexander Schakowski
🚨 🚨 Publication alert🚨 🚨
Great work led by the brilliant @drelenamiu.bsky.social.
Using agent-based models, we show that age-structured learning (kids explore broadly; adults refine/exploit) boosts long-term cultural payoffs vs. using the same strategies in random order. shorturl.at/rdlhv
Great work led by the brilliant @drelenamiu.bsky.social.
Using agent-based models, we show that age-structured learning (kids explore broadly; adults refine/exploit) boosts long-term cultural payoffs vs. using the same strategies in random order. shorturl.at/rdlhv
The relationship between childhood exploration and population-level innovation in cultural evolution
Abstract. The societal effects of children’s learning in cultural evolution have been underexplored. Here, we investigate using agent-based models how a pr
royalsocietypublishing.org
January 22, 2026 at 1:26 PM
🚨 🚨 Publication alert🚨 🚨
Great work led by the brilliant @drelenamiu.bsky.social.
Using agent-based models, we show that age-structured learning (kids explore broadly; adults refine/exploit) boosts long-term cultural payoffs vs. using the same strategies in random order. shorturl.at/rdlhv
Great work led by the brilliant @drelenamiu.bsky.social.
Using agent-based models, we show that age-structured learning (kids explore broadly; adults refine/exploit) boosts long-term cultural payoffs vs. using the same strategies in random order. shorturl.at/rdlhv
Reposted by Alexander Schakowski
Huge thanks to everyone who joined the launch yesterday! 🙌 We’re really excited about your ideas and plans ahead for 2026. If you couldn’t make the event, you can join the society here: www.eslrsociety.com/membershipoin and join our Discord channel: discord.gg/wxMxcXYj
www.eslrsociety.com
January 15, 2026 at 10:13 AM
Huge thanks to everyone who joined the launch yesterday! 🙌 We’re really excited about your ideas and plans ahead for 2026. If you couldn’t make the event, you can join the society here: www.eslrsociety.com/membershipoin and join our Discord channel: discord.gg/wxMxcXYj
Join us today at 1PM GMT to learn about ESLR, a community of early-career researchers interested in social learning, cultural evolution and related topics! 🎉 🤝 For details, see link below.
🎉 📣Join today at 1pm GMT to learn about ESLR and get involved!
📣 Join us Wednesday 14 Jan at 1pm GMT 💻🌍 Early career researcher interested in culture, behaviour, and learning? Get involved, learn about ESLR, and meet others in the field. We'll cover 2026 activities including skill-sharing sessions. 🛠️💡 Join: meet.google.com/sun-ddcz-gky
January 14, 2026 at 10:24 AM
Join us today at 1PM GMT to learn about ESLR, a community of early-career researchers interested in social learning, cultural evolution and related topics! 🎉 🤝 For details, see link below.
Reposted by Alexander Schakowski
🎉 📣Join today at 1pm GMT to learn about ESLR and get involved!
📣 Join us Wednesday 14 Jan at 1pm GMT 💻🌍 Early career researcher interested in culture, behaviour, and learning? Get involved, learn about ESLR, and meet others in the field. We'll cover 2026 activities including skill-sharing sessions. 🛠️💡 Join: meet.google.com/sun-ddcz-gky
Meet
Real-time meetings by Google. Using your browser, share your video, desktop, and presentations with teammates and customers.
meet.google.com
January 14, 2026 at 10:12 AM
🎉 📣Join today at 1pm GMT to learn about ESLR and get involved!
Reposted by Alexander Schakowski
Our new paper in Hunter-Gatherer Research!
We explored women’s decision-making power within households in two subsistence communities with different gender norms (BaYaka foragers & Bandongo fisher-farmers) in the Congolese rainforest ✨
www.liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/doi/abs/10.3...
We explored women’s decision-making power within households in two subsistence communities with different gender norms (BaYaka foragers & Bandongo fisher-farmers) in the Congolese rainforest ✨
www.liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/doi/abs/10.3...
"Older women in both communities report higher autonomy than younger women. Both BaYaka and Bandongo women make decisions on food sharing. However, BaYaka women report greater control over financial and healthcare decisions than Bandongo women, who often share decision-making with their husbands"
Women’s self-reported autonomy in household decision-making varies between BaYaka foragers and Bandongo farmers in the Congo Basin | Hunter Gatherer Research
Women’s decision-making power within households is a critical aspect of gender equality, influencing the well-being of household members and family dynamics. This study examines women’s perceived autonomy in household decision-making among BaYaka hunter-...
www.liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk
January 14, 2026 at 8:46 AM
Our new paper in Hunter-Gatherer Research!
We explored women’s decision-making power within households in two subsistence communities with different gender norms (BaYaka foragers & Bandongo fisher-farmers) in the Congolese rainforest ✨
www.liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/doi/abs/10.3...
We explored women’s decision-making power within households in two subsistence communities with different gender norms (BaYaka foragers & Bandongo fisher-farmers) in the Congolese rainforest ✨
www.liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/doi/abs/10.3...
Reposted by Alexander Schakowski
New article in Hunter Gatherer Research!
Foraging societies practice consensus-based politics. We conduct a xc review and argue that it helps to boost collective intelligence.
Consensus, cooperation and collective intelligence in foraging societies
liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/doi/10.3828/...
Foraging societies practice consensus-based politics. We conduct a xc review and argue that it helps to boost collective intelligence.
Consensus, cooperation and collective intelligence in foraging societies
liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/doi/10.3828/...
Consensus, cooperation and collective intelligence in foraging societies | Hunter Gatherer Research
Consensus-based collective decision-making is a common feature of political life in hunter-gatherer (forager) societies. In this paper, we ask why. Synthesising evidence from anthropology and experimental social psychology, we argue that consensus-based ...
liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk
January 6, 2026 at 3:58 PM
New article in Hunter Gatherer Research!
Foraging societies practice consensus-based politics. We conduct a xc review and argue that it helps to boost collective intelligence.
Consensus, cooperation and collective intelligence in foraging societies
liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/doi/10.3828/...
Foraging societies practice consensus-based politics. We conduct a xc review and argue that it helps to boost collective intelligence.
Consensus, cooperation and collective intelligence in foraging societies
liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/doi/10.3828/...
Reposted by Alexander Schakowski
🚨 New preprint 🚨
Excited to share new work led by @tikhomirova.bsky.social, presenting a large-scale evaluation of the accessibility of psycholinguistic information in transformer language models.
Preprint: arxiv.org/abs/2601.03798
Excited to share new work led by @tikhomirova.bsky.social, presenting a large-scale evaluation of the accessibility of psycholinguistic information in transformer language models.
Preprint: arxiv.org/abs/2601.03798
January 8, 2026 at 10:48 AM
🚨 New preprint 🚨
Excited to share new work led by @tikhomirova.bsky.social, presenting a large-scale evaluation of the accessibility of psycholinguistic information in transformer language models.
Preprint: arxiv.org/abs/2601.03798
Excited to share new work led by @tikhomirova.bsky.social, presenting a large-scale evaluation of the accessibility of psycholinguistic information in transformer language models.
Preprint: arxiv.org/abs/2601.03798
Reposted by Alexander Schakowski
Proc B with @sampassmore.bsky.social! We used simulations to explore the innovation strategies of speed climbers 🧗♀️ Innovation is higher among slower athletes and lower when the population size is larger, and the overall balance of innovation and copying appears to be suboptimal 🔗 bit.ly/499QjZM
Simulation-based inference with deep learning suggests speed climbers combine innovation and copying to improve performance
Abstract. In the Olympic sport of speed climbing, athletes compete to reach the top of a 15 m wall as quickly as possible. Since the standardization of the
bit.ly
January 8, 2026 at 2:00 PM
Proc B with @sampassmore.bsky.social! We used simulations to explore the innovation strategies of speed climbers 🧗♀️ Innovation is higher among slower athletes and lower when the population size is larger, and the overall balance of innovation and copying appears to be suboptimal 🔗 bit.ly/499QjZM
Consider signing up for a skill-sharing session for ESLR, a friendly and supportive community of early-career researchers interested in social learning 🤝 This is a great opportunity to rehearse teaching or workshop materials! 🎓
🎓 Got a skill to share? Pass on your wisdom by hosting a friendly session with the ESLR community online! A great chance to test-run a workshop or rehearse teaching material in a supportive setting. Writing, analysis, academic life… if it's helped you, we'd love to hear it ✨ tinyurl.com/57v7ftd3
ESLR Skill Sharing Spring 2026
tinyurl.com
January 7, 2026 at 3:39 PM
Consider signing up for a skill-sharing session for ESLR, a friendly and supportive community of early-career researchers interested in social learning 🤝 This is a great opportunity to rehearse teaching or workshop materials! 🎓
Reposted by Alexander Schakowski
🎓 Got a skill to share? Pass on your wisdom by hosting a friendly session with the ESLR community online! A great chance to test-run a workshop or rehearse teaching material in a supportive setting. Writing, analysis, academic life… if it's helped you, we'd love to hear it ✨ tinyurl.com/57v7ftd3
ESLR Skill Sharing Spring 2026
tinyurl.com
January 7, 2026 at 2:30 PM
🎓 Got a skill to share? Pass on your wisdom by hosting a friendly session with the ESLR community online! A great chance to test-run a workshop or rehearse teaching material in a supportive setting. Writing, analysis, academic life… if it's helped you, we'd love to hear it ✨ tinyurl.com/57v7ftd3
Reposted by Alexander Schakowski
Our paper is published today in Current Biology and is featured on the cover!
We report a neat, and somewhat counter-intuitive, finding: higher-ranking baboons get less and more interrupted night-time rest.
We report a neat, and somewhat counter-intuitive, finding: higher-ranking baboons get less and more interrupted night-time rest.
January 6, 2026 at 9:39 AM
Our paper is published today in Current Biology and is featured on the cover!
We report a neat, and somewhat counter-intuitive, finding: higher-ranking baboons get less and more interrupted night-time rest.
We report a neat, and somewhat counter-intuitive, finding: higher-ranking baboons get less and more interrupted night-time rest.
Reposted by Alexander Schakowski
NEW: We show and replicate socioeconomic gradients in heuristics for decision-making under uncertainty, possibly reflecting adaptations varying levels of scarcity and competition for resources 🫰
Shoutout and thanks to @danielnettle.bsky.social & @coraliechevallier.bsky.social ❤️🔥
tinyurl.com/mu7rzz6k
Shoutout and thanks to @danielnettle.bsky.social & @coraliechevallier.bsky.social ❤️🔥
tinyurl.com/mu7rzz6k
Low socioeconomic status amplifies the perceived rarity of large rewards
Decision-making relies on heuristics derived from past experiences that likely vary with socioeconomic status. We investigate socioeconomic difference…
www.sciencedirect.com
December 23, 2025 at 11:28 AM
NEW: We show and replicate socioeconomic gradients in heuristics for decision-making under uncertainty, possibly reflecting adaptations varying levels of scarcity and competition for resources 🫰
Shoutout and thanks to @danielnettle.bsky.social & @coraliechevallier.bsky.social ❤️🔥
tinyurl.com/mu7rzz6k
Shoutout and thanks to @danielnettle.bsky.social & @coraliechevallier.bsky.social ❤️🔥
tinyurl.com/mu7rzz6k
Reposted by Alexander Schakowski
I’m thrilled to share the preprint with @sangkjyuson.bksy.social. It’s a fun example of applying dynamical systems approaches to social behavior, and the first two-author manuscript from Y-Lab.
Sangkyu has put together a well-written thread to walk you through the ideas (see below ⬇️)
Sangkyu has put together a well-written thread to walk you through the ideas (see below ⬇️)
New print 📄!
0/ I'm excited to share my preprint with @myoo.bsky.social on how #observation shapes #socialinference.
(Full paper: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...)
🗓️ I'll also present this work at #CCN2025 on August 12, poster A26—come find me there!
0/ I'm excited to share my preprint with @myoo.bsky.social on how #observation shapes #socialinference.
(Full paper: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...)
🗓️ I'll also present this work at #CCN2025 on August 12, poster A26—come find me there!
August 11, 2025 at 7:17 AM
I’m thrilled to share the preprint with @sangkjyuson.bksy.social. It’s a fun example of applying dynamical systems approaches to social behavior, and the first two-author manuscript from Y-Lab.
Sangkyu has put together a well-written thread to walk you through the ideas (see below ⬇️)
Sangkyu has put together a well-written thread to walk you through the ideas (see below ⬇️)