Dr Tobias Tanton accepted into prestigious Psychology Cross-training Fellowship Programme for Theologians

Harris Manchester would like to congratulate Alumnus and Early Career Fellow and Tutor in Theology, Dr Tobias Tanton (2012, DPhil Theology), on his acceptance into the prestigious University of Birmingham’s Psychology Cross-training Fellowship Programme for Theologians and funded by the John Templeton Foundation. The programme provides theologians with chance to work alongside psychologists through workshops and mentoring opportunities.

Tobias studied at the Australian National University and originally worked in commerce and information technology before turning to academic theology. He took his third bachelor’s degree at Charles Sturt University, and his postgraduate degrees in Oxford, first as an Ertegun Scholar and MPhil student at Harris Manchester, and then as a DPhil student and holder of the Arthur Peacocke Graduate Studentship in Science and Religion at Exeter College. He held a postdoctoral fellowship in the Faculty of Divinity at Cambridge (2017 – 2018), and from 2018-2022 was Lecturer in Theology at Ripon College Cuddesdon.

Tobias’ research examines systematic theology in dialogue with the emerging area of cognitive science known as ‘embodied cognition’. Embodied cognition considers how factors beyond the brain—such as emotional body states, perceptual interactions or engagement with material culture—participate in our cognitive processes. His work probes how findings in this area relate to liturgical theology, theological concepts, and the principle of divine accommodation.