About Us

From the Department Head

Greetings from Mississippi State’s Department of Philosophy and Religion! I welcome your interest in our department and encourage you to explore what our faculty and students achieve across campus and across the world.

Our planet is a dynamic place, so it’s often difficult to get a handle on what is happening and what it all means. The study of philosophy and the study of religion serve as systematic approaches to understanding and addressing these matters. Our faculty produce cutting-edge research into these issues and contribute to both local and global conversations. A brief look at a list of our publications will reveal a range of topics that may surprise you: consciousness, human language development, the nature of happiness, mountain top removal, the ethics of scientific research practices, Howard Thurman, whether neuroscience or psychology is the best discipline for studying the mind, the nature of the mathematical resources used in physics, Christian theology, how dance expresses artistic ideas, political genealogy, how machines and humans interact, just to name a few. Many people have little exposure to what the academic study of philosophy or religion looks like, but it has become increasingly interdisciplinary. It turns out that the “big” questions span many fields and areas of study, so if you want to pursue them responsibly, you have to learn how to integrate information and concepts from lots of sources. It’s this ability to analyze and integrate information, no matter what its source, that best prepares our students for whatever career path they take.

I encourage you to explore the pages here and see the exciting things we are accomplishing. The best way to learn more information is to stop by our offices in George Hall and meet with one of us.

Best wishes,

Dr. Robert Thompson
Head of the Department of Philosophy & Religion