Alan Goodman

Professor of Biological Anthropology
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Alan Goodman
Cole Science Center 110
413.549.4600

Alan Goodman, professor of biological anthropology, teaches and writes on the health and nutritional consequences of political-economic processes such as poverty, inequality, and racism. His current research includes projects on malnutrition in Mexico and Egypt, and the stresses of slavery in New York.

Before coming to Hampshire, he received his Ph.D. from the University of Massachusetts and was a postdoctoral fellow in international nutrition at University of Connecticut and a research fellow in stress physiology at Karolinska Institute, Stockholm. Goodman previously served as Hampshire's dean of faculty and the president of the American Anthropological Association (AAA). He continues to co-direct the AAA's public education project on race (understandingrace.org).

Personal Website

Recent and Upcoming Courses

  • Wherever one looks, one finds an association between wealth and health. The greater an individual, family or large social group's access to resources and political power, the better their health and nutrition. As well, how, how well, and why this connection applies also varies. In this course we will start with the data showing the connections between inequalities and measures of health such as life expectancy and infant mortality, exploring the US over time and with more equitable countries. We will then focus on understanding how processes such as stress, nutrition, pollution and implicit racism get under the skin and are linked to health outcomes and life chances. We will explore the changing dynamics of race and class in relation to health and nutrition. Ultimately, we will explore the way that inequalities in the US might be harming everyone's health and well-being. Keywords:Racism, Poverty, Health, Nutrition, Inequality

  • Wherever one looks, one finds an association between wealth and health. The greater an individual, family or large social group's access to resources and political power, the better their health and nutrition. As well, how, how well, and why this connection applies also varies. In this course we will start with the data showing the connections between inequalities and measures of health such as life expectancy and infant mortality, exploring the US over time and more equitable countries. We will then focus on understanding how processes such as stress, nutrition, pollution and implicit racism get under the skin and are linked to health outcomes and life chances. We will explore the changing dynamics of race and class in relationship to health and nutrition. Ultimately, we will explore the way that inequalities in the US might be harming everyone's health and well-being. KEYWORDS:nutrition, health, race, inequality, biology