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IU Bloomington

Justin Garcia

The Kinsey Institute and Department of Gender Studies

Expert Bio

Justin R. Garcia is the executive director of the Kinsey Institute, the Ruth N. Halls Professor of Gender Studies and an IU Bicentennial Professor. He holds affiliate faculty appointments in cognitive science, network science, public health and medicine, and he serves as co-chair of the Interdepartmental Graduate Committee on Human Sexuality at Indiana University.

His research interests focus on the evolutionary and biocultural foundations of romantic and sexual relationships across the life course. Garcia and colleagues have conducted research on a variety of topics related to love and sex, including sexual behaviors, monogamy, intimacy, courtship, dating, desire, satisfaction and reproductive strategies. Since 2010, he has been scientific advisor to the relationship company Match.com.

An award-winning researcher and educator, Garcia has lent his expertise to a variety of industry partners and served as an expert witness. He has co-authored dozens of academic articles and book chapters, and he is co-author of “Evolution and Human Sexual Behavior” (Harvard University Press) and co-editor of “Evolution’s Empress: Darwinian Perspectives on the Nature of Women” (Oxford University Press). His forthcoming book is titled “The Intimate Animal.”

Garcia has appeared in a wide variety of news outlets and documentaries, including CNN, MSNBC, HBO, “The Dr. Oz Show,” Netflix and National Geographic, and his research and expertise have been featured in venues such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Time, Cosmopolitan and Vanity Fair.

He earned an M.S. in biomedical anthropology and Ph.D. in evolutionary biology from Binghamton University, and then completed an NIH postdoctoral research fellowship. 

Areas of Expertise

Evolutionary behavioral sciences, gender, intimate relationships, romantic love, social and sexual monogamy, sexual behavior, sexual and reproductive health, social/sexual monogamy, sexual and gender diversity.

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