Alexandra Plakias

Originally from New York City, Alexandra Plakias graduated from Hamilton College in 2002 before moving to Santa Cruz, Calif., where she received a master’s from the University of California. She then completed her doctorate at the University of Michigan and spent two years as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Aberdeen, in Scotland. Her research focuses on issues in moral psychology, such as the role of evolution and culture in our moral values. She has also written about moral relativism and about the role of empirical research in philosophical theorizing.

Recent Courses Taught

Introduction to Philosophy
Philosophy of Religion
Food and Philosophy

Selected Publications

• "Beetles, Bicycles, and Breath Mints: How ‘omni’ are omnivores?" in Stirring the Pot, Oxford University Press. Forthcoming.
• "Metaethics: Traditional and Empirical Approaches," in The Blackwell Companion to Experimental Philosophy.  Blackwell. Forthcoming.
• "Experimental Philosophy," Oxford Online Handbooks of Philosophy. Forthcoming. 
• Review of ‘Morality and the Emotions,’ forthcoming in The Journal of Moral Philosophy.
• "The Good and the Gross," Ethical Theory and Moral Practice.
• ‘Well-Being." 2010. With Valerie Tiberius. In The Handbook of Moral Psychology, John Doris, ed. Oxford University Press.
• "How to Argue About Disagreement." 2008. With John Doris. In Moral Psychology, Volume 2: The Cognitive Science of Morality. Walter Sinnott-Armstrong, ed. MIT Press.
• "How to Find a Moral Disagreement."  2008. With John Doris. In Moral Psychology, Volume 2: The Cognitive Science of Morality. Walter Sinnott-Armstrong, ed. MIT Press.

Appointed to the Faculty

Educational Background

Ph.D., University of Michigan
M.A., University of California, Santa Cruz
B.A., Hamilton College