Will Gervais
Dr. Will Gervais is a cognitive and cultural psychologist whose research explores how humans become – and remain – religious or non-religious. A Reader in Psychology at Brunel University London, he leads the Culture and Evolution MSc Programme, examining how evolutionary and cultural forces shape belief systems, morality, and cooperation.
His work is especially known for advancing the scientific study of atheism and understanding why large populations of humans across history and around the world adopt—or reject—religious beliefs.
Will grew up in Colorado, studied at the University of Denver and the University of British Columbia, and has held academic posts in the United States, New Zealand, and the UK.
He is the author of Disbelief: The Origins of Atheism in a Religious Species (2024), which investigates why nonbelief emerges within a species so strongly shaped by religion.