Peter Kahn. Photo by Brian Smale


Biographical Sketch


Peter H. Kahn, Jr. is a Professor in the Department of Psychology and Director of the Human Interaction With Nature and Technological Systems (HINTS) Lab. The HINTS Lab seeks to address - from a psychological stance - two world trends that are powerfully reshaping human existence: (1) the degradation if not destruction of large parts of the natural world, and (2) unprecedented technological development, both in terms of its computational sophistication and pervasiveness. He received his Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley in 1988. His publications have appeared in such journals as Child Development, Developmental Psychology, Human-Computer Interaction, and Journal of Systems Software, as well as in such proceedings as CHI, HRI, and Ubicomp. His five books, all published with MIT Press, are:

  • The Rediscovery of the Wild (MIT Press, 2013, with Patricia Hasbach)

  • Ecopsychology: Science, Totems, and the Technological Species (MIT Press, 2012, with Patricia Hasbach)

  • Technological Nature: Adaptation and the Future of Human Life (MIT Press, 2011)

  • The Human Relationship with Nature: Development and Culture (MIT Press, 1999)

  • Children and Nature: Psychological, Sociocultural, and Evolutionary Investigations (MIT Press, 2002, with Stephen Kellert)
His research projects are currently being funded by the National Science Foundation.