PhD Candidate Biological Anthropology
she/her/hers
Matriculated September 2018
Research Interests
Stress, life history theory; attachment theory; health
Social Media & Websites
Connect with me on Twitter: @jesshlay
About
I’m currently a PhD student on the biological track. I earned my undergraduate degrees in Anthropology and Psychology at Penn State University in 2018, where I conducted research in both departments. Here at Boston University, I continue my research in Dr. Carolyn Hodges-Simeon’s lab. Broadly, I am interested in how individual differences in attachment styles, environments, and health affect life history strategies and reproductive outcomes.
Currently, I am researching how environments and immune function influence individual variation in pathogen and sexual disgust levels, and how this can result in health-protective behaviors.
Awards & Grants
- Cora du Bois Fellowship. $35,000. (July 2023).
- BU Center for Innovation in Social Science (CISS) Travel Awards. $500. (Summer 2023).
- NSF Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grant (DDRIG) #2149052. Study: Ontogenetic and environmental origins of pathogen disgust sensitivity. $25,054. (2022).
- NSF Research Experience for Graduate Students Grant. $5,685. (2021). Study: How & when do children acquire disgust?
- Remote Teacher Training Professional Development. $3,000. (2020)
- Department of Anthropology Summer Research Grant. $2,000. (2020).
- Department of Anthropology Summer Research Grant. $3,000. (2019).
- Boston University Dean’s Fellowship: $23,340, annually. (2018-2021).
- Penn State Liberal Arts Enrichment Grant, Study: Stress & Competition. $1,500. (2018).
Publications
- Albert, G., Wells, E., Arnocky, S., Liu, C.H., Hlay, J.K., Hodges-Simeon, C.R. (2022). Does Men’s Facial Sexual Dimorphism Affect Male Observers’ Selective Attention? Adaptive Human Behavior and Physiology. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40750-022-00205-8
- Hlay, J.K., Albert, G., Waldron, K., Batres, C., Richardson, G., Placek, C., Arnocky, S.A., Hodges-Simeon, C.R. (2022). A cross-cultural analysis of the relationship between disgust and sociosexuality. Evolution and Human Behavior. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2022.04.005
- Albert, G., Hlay, J.K., Chen, M., Wells, E., Arnocky, S.A., Hong Liu, C., Hodges-Simeon, C.R. (2022). Masculinized Faces are Perceived as More Dangerous, but Are Not More Memorable. Human Ethology. https://doi.org/10.22330/he/37/016-029
- Hlay, J.K., Johnson, B.N., Levy, K.N. (2022). Attachment security predicts tend-and-befriend behaviors: A replication. Evolutionary Behavioral Sciences. https://doi.org/10.1037/ebs0000284
- Albert, G., Richardson, G.B., Arnocky, S.A., Senveli, Z., Hlay, J.K., Hodges-Simeon, C.R. (2022). The psychometric evaluation of the intrasexual competition scale. Archives of Sexual Behavior. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-021-02167-6
- Hlay, J. K., Albert, G., Batres, C., Richardson, G., Placek, C., Arnocky, S., Lieberman, D., & Hodges-Simeon, C. R. (2021). The evolution of disgust for pathogen detection and avoidance. Scientific Reports, 11(1), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-91712-3
- Levy, K.N., Hlay, J.K., Johnson, B.N., Witmer, C.P. (2019). An attachment theoretical perspective on tend-and-befriend stress reactions. Evolutionary Psychological Science, 1-14. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40806-019-00197-x