Joshua Rottman Ph.D.

Associate Professor
Franklin & Marshall College


Josh Rottman, is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology and the Program in Scientific and Philosophical Studies of Mind at Franklin & Marshall College.  Dr. Rottman’s research is situated at the intersection of cognitive development and moral psychology and he primarily focuses on studying the factors that lead certain entities and objects to be attributed with (or stripped of) moral concern.  Dr. Rottman is guided by the hope that a scientific understanding of our moral inclinations will provide us with critical information about psychological barriers and leverage points that will be relevant for improving the world. 

Dr. Rottman grew up in Western Colorado, and is always very happy to get a chance to go hiking in the desert or mountains.  Otherwise, when Dr. Rottman is not exploring the outdoors or thinking about teaching and research, Dr. Rottman can often be found watching episodes of Black Mirror with his partner Lysa (a dentist and artist), singing Broadway show tunes with his daughter Sage, or unsuccessfully trying to train his dog Reuben to stop barking so much.

Publications

Rottman, J., Crimston, C. R., & Syropoulos, S. (2021). Tree-huggers versus human-lovers: Anthropomorphism and dehumanization predict valuing nature over outgroups. Cognitive Science, 45(4), e12967. (https://www.joshuarottman.com/uploads/8/2/7/9/8279307/rottman_et_al_2021_cognitivescience.pdf)