UMass Boston

Areas of Expertise

Evolution and human behavior, developmental psychology, social neuroscience 

Degrees

PhD, University of California, Santa Barbara

Professional Publications & Contributions

  • Corpuz, R. & D’Alessandro, S. & Moon, J.M. (under review). Parental Calibration of Infant Growth via Mini Puberty.
  • Corpuz, D’Alessandro, & Collom (2020). The postnatal testosterone rebound in first-time fathers and the quality and quantity of paternal care. Special Issue in Developmental Psychobiology
  • Corpuz, R. (2020). The role of maternal environment on calibrating “mini puberty” in early infant development. Developmental Psychobiology.
  • Corpuz, R., D’Alessandro, S., Adeyemo, J. , Jankowski, N. , & Kandalaft, K. (2020). Life History Orientation Predicts COVID-19 Precautions and Projected Behaviors. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, 1857.
  • Corpuz, R. & Bugental, D. (2020). Life history and individual differences in male testosterone: Mixed evidence for early environmental calibration of testosterone response to first-time fatherhood. Hormones and Behavior, 120, 105684
  • Bugental, D.B. & Corpuz, R. (2019). Transactional interactions between parents and offspring. In M.H. Bornstein (Eds.), Handbook of Parenting. London: LEA.
  • Corpuz, R. (2018). Discriminative Parental Solicitude. T.K. Shackelford & V.A. Weekes- Shackelford (Eds.), Encyclopedia of Animal Cognition and Behavior. New York: Springer.
  • Corpuz, R. (2017). Parent-offspring conflict theory. In T.K. Shackelford & V.A. Weekes- Shackelford (Eds.), Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychology. New York: Springer.
  • Corpuz, R. (2017). Paternal investment in humans. In T.K. Shackelford & V.A. Weekes- Shackelford (Eds.), Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychology. New York: Springer.
  • Bugental, D.B., Corpuz, R., Beaulieu, D.B., (2015). An evolutionary approach to socialization. In J.E. Grusec & P.D. Hastings (Eds.), Handbook of Socialization. New York: Guilford.
  • Bugental, D. B., Corpuz, R., & Samec, R. (2013). Outcomes of parental investment in high- risk children. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology.
  • Bugental, D. B., Corpuz, R., & Schwartz, A. (2012). Preventing children’s aggression: Outcomes of an early intervention. Developmental Psychology, 48 (5), 1443-1449.
  • Hehman, J.A., Corpuz, R., & Bugental, D.B., (2012). Patronizing speech to older adults. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, 1-13.
  • Bugental, D. B., Beaulieu, D. B., & Corpuz, R. (2011). Parental investment in caregiving relationships. In S.L. Brown, R. M. Brown, & L.A. Penner (Eds.), Self-interest and beyond: Toward a new understanding of human caregiving. New York: Oxford.

Additional Information

We all seek out information that helps us predict components of our future. A common example is the weather: Will it rain tomorrow?  How hot will it be midday? 

Forecasts provide us with an opportunity to strategically prepare for any anticipated challenges in the world. They serve as signposts—informative "cues" that direct you toward one coordinated set of strategies over an alternate set of strategies. Across species, development across the lifespan unfolds based largely on forecasts gleaned from environmental cues provided very early in life.  

Randy Corpuz’ research investigates what these processes might look like in humans.

His research explores how children, as early as in utero, utilize both of their parents as signposts. What do cues like paternal depression, harsh parenting, and father absence indicate to a child about the level of threat in the immediate environment? How do children use these cues to calibrate and refine the developmental trajectory of specific biological systems in a manner that enhances their ability to meet the anticipated demands of their environment? 

Corpuz’ current work is specific to fathers. His research program is grounded in evolutionary biology and he employs methods from developmental psychology, endocrinology, and social neuroscience. His ongoing projects involve first-time families recruited as participants from the community. Working in the Corpuz Lab will involve interacting with mothers, fathers, and young children (ages 0-3) in the community and in controlled lab environments. All family members are asked to provide saliva that can then be assayed for a range of hormones (e.g., testosterone and cortisol) known to influence psychological and physiological functioning across the lifespan.

Students interested in applying for a lab position as a research assistant, click here: http://www.randycorpuz.com/application

Currently accepting graduate students for Fall 2021, get more information here: Developmental and Brain Sciences (DBS), PhD

Teaching

The Biology and Psychology of Being Dad (HON 293)
Mating Psychology: The nature and nurture of romantic relationships (HON 210)
Social Psychology (PSY 230)
Statistics (PSY 370)