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CNRS researcher
Toulouse School of Economics Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse 1 Esplanade de l’Université 31080 Toulouse Cedex 06 France maxime.derex_at_iast.fr @MaximeDerex |
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My research lies at the crossroads of evolutionary anthropology and psychology, delving into the mechanisms by which groups of individuals tackle complex problems. I am particularly interested in unraveling the dynamics of knowledge transmission and accumulation within groups over time, drawing insights from cultural evolution theory. By examining the interplay between cognitive processes, social dynamics, and ecological pressures, I aim to shed light on how human cultures evolve and adapt to novel circumstances.
Some of the questions I am currently interested in are:
- What cognitive abilities enable humans to innovate?
- What types of social interaction patterns promote collective intelligence?
- To what extent do pre-existing solutions constrain exploration and creativity?
Selected Publications
Derex M., Bonnefon J.F., Boyd R. & Mesoudi M. 2019. Causal understanding is not necessary for the improvement of culturally evolving technology. Nature Human Behaviour. PDF
Derex M., Beugin M.P., Godelle B. & Raymond M. 2013. Experimental evidence for the influence of group size on cultural complexity. Nature. 503:389-391. PDF
Derex M. & Boyd R. 2016. Partial connectivity increases cultural accumulation within groups. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 113:2982-2987. PDF
Derex M. & Boyd R. 2015. The foundations of the human cultural niche. Nature Communications, 6, 8398. PDF
Brinkmann, L., Baumann, F., Bonnefon, J. F., Derex, M., Müller, T. F., Nussberger, A. M., ... & Rahwan, I. 2023. Machine culture. Nature Human Behaviour. PDF
