Karin Enstam Jaffe

Office

Biography

I joined the Department of Anthropology as a faculty member in August 2002. A dedicated teacher-scholar, I have been the recipient of the Associated Students Educator of the Year Award (2004-2005), SSU's Excellence in Teaching Award (2009-2010), and the President's Excellence in Scholarship Award (2015-2016). During my time as a faculty member, I served as Anthropology Department Chair (2008-2013, 2014-2015), Coordinator of the Human Development Program (2014-2020), Coordinator of the Liberal Studies-Ukiah Program (2018-2019), and Faculty Associate Dean of the School of Social Sciences (2019-2024). 

In July 2024, I was appointed Interim Associate Dean of the College of Humanities, Social Sciences, and the Arts. 

Education

University of California, Davis, PhD in Anthropology, 2002

University of California, Davis, MA in Anthropology, 1997

University of California, San Diego, BA in Anthropology, 1994

Degrees

Academic Interests

My research interests focus on applied animal behavior and primate behavior and ecology. I have over 20 years of experience studying primate behavior, and have conducted research in Kenya, Grenada, at the San Francisco Zoo, Safari West Wildlife Preserve, and at CRES (Center for Reproduction of Endangered Species) at the San Diego Zoo. I was a Research Associate at Oakland Zoo from July 2015 to January 2022 where I was involved in behavioral enrichment research involving ring-tailed lemurs, chimpanzees, and sun bears, as well as a study of the social network of hamadryas baboons.

Concentrations

Biological anthropology, primate behavior and ecology, applied animal behavior, evolution of human and primate behavior

Selected Publications & Presentations

To view a complete list of all publications and presentations, or download PDFs, please go to my ResearchGate Profile or Academia Profile.

Ghavamian, Y.*, Minier, D.E., & Jaffe, K.E. (2023) Effects of complex feeding enrichment on the behavior of captive Malayan sun bears (Helarctos malayanus). Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science. 26(4): 670-684. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/10888705.2021.2023874

Jaffe, K.E. (2023) Primate Ecology and Behavior. In: Explorations: An Open Invitation to Biological Anthropology, 2nd Edition. (B. Shook, L. Braff, K. Nelson, and K. Aguilera, eds.). American Anthropological Association, Arlington, VA. (ebook ISBN: 978-1-931303-82-8).

Molinaro, H.G.*, Minier, D.E., & Jaffe, K.E. (2022) Using social network analysis to inform the process of one-male-unit formation of hamadryas baboons (Papio hamadryas) in captivity. Zoo Biology. 41(2): 108-121. DOI: doi.org/10.1002/zoo.21663

Radosevich, L.*, Jaffe, K.E., & Minier, D.E. (2021) The utility of social network analysis for informing zoo management: Changing network dynamics of a group of captive hamadryas baboons (Papio hamadryas) following an introduction of two young males. Zoo Biology. 40(6): 503-516. DOI: doi.org/10.1002/zoo.21630

* graduate student collaborator