Professor of Psychological Science W. David Stahlman
Professor of Psychological Science W. David Stahlman was quoted by Discover Magazine in an article titled “Do Animals Hold Funerals for Their Loved Ones Like We Do, or Are We Just Projecting Grief? In the article Stahlman said that while several species exhibit behaviors that seem ritualistic, such as holding funerals, few engage in characteristic forms of the behavior, meaning consistent, observable actions. “I think we do a disservice to the science if we were to refer to such behavior as ‘holding a funeral.’ I think, rather, that what we call having a funeral in humans may be largely an extension of typical behavior in particularly social but nonverbal animals,” Stahlman said. Read the article in Discover Magazine.