John Albanese

Dr. John AlbaneseJohn Albanese, PhD, MSc, HBA
Associate Professor

Office: 256-1 CHS
Email: albanese@uwindsor.ca
Telephone: 519.253.3000 ext. 3973

 

Research and Teaching Areas

Dr. Albanese's research interests are in forensic anthropology and bioarchaeology. He uses a biocultural approach to investigate human skeletal variation, the history of anatomical instruction and physical anthropology, and race and racism in anthropology and forensic science. He has developed new theoretical and methodological approaches for investigating human variation using identified skeletal collections in North America and Europe including the Terry, Grant, Coimbra, and Lisbon Collections. He has applied these new methodologies to develop skeletal sex estimation methods and stature estimation methods that are widely applicable in forensic cases and bioarchaeological contexts, and he has extensively critiqued the "race concept" in forensic anthropology.

He has recently begun a comprehensive investigation of human and animal skeletons from Mycenaean Greece. He has worked with First Nations in Ontario on repatriation issues. He regularly assists the Windsor Police Service and is involved in the investigation of international human rights violations.

Dr Albanese is a member of the “Feminism, Social Justice & Argumentation” and “Scientific Argumentation” research clusters of the Argumentation Studies Ph.D. program. Please visit the Argumentation Studies webpage for more information about the program.

Contact Dr. Albanese for spreadsheets and apps based on his published methods that can be used in forensic and bioarchaeological contexts.

Recent Courses Taught

Dr. Albanese teaches courses in physical anthropology and forensic science including a practical lab course in human osteology and forensic anthropology, and several senior undergraduate seminar courses in forensic science and human skeletal variation. Additionally, he regularly supervises a number of undergraduate student placements and research projects in his research lab including 15 honours theses in forensic science. In several cases, this research has led to co-authorships of papers presented at scholarly conferences and published in peer-reviewed journals.

There is no graduate program in Anthropology at the University of Windsor, but Dr. Albanese does supervise graduate students in the sociology and criminology MA programs. Students interested in pursuing graduate level research in topics including racism, sexism, poverty and inequality in the past and present within a multidisciplinary context that includes forensic anthropology and bioarchaeology should contact Dr. Albanese.

Dr. Albanese has regularly taught:

  • Principles of Physical Anthropology (48-215) at the second year level
  • Forensic Anthropology (48-323) at the third year level
  • Human Skeletal Variation (48-412) at the fourth year level
  • Expert Witness in Forensic Science (57-302) at the third year level
  • Theory and Practice in Forensic Sciences (57-400) at the fourth year level

Education

  • SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Toronto, Forensic Anthropology and History of Anatomy
  • PhD, McMaster University (2003), Anthropology
  • MSc, University of Toronto (1997), Anthropology
  • HBA, University of Western Ontario (1995), Anthropology

Recent and Key Publications

  • Albanese J. 2018. The Grant Human Skeletal Collection and Other Contributions of J. C. B. Grant to Anatomy, Osteology, and Forensic Anthropology. In Identified Skeletal Collections: the Testing Ground of Anthropology. Charlotte Henderson and Francisca Alves Cardoso, eds. Oxford: Archaeopress, pp 35-57.
  • Albanese J. 2018. Strategies for Dealing with Bias in Identified Reference Collections and Implications for Research in the 21st Century. In Identified Skeletal Collections: the Testing Ground of Anthropology. Charlotte Henderson and Francisca Alves Cardoso, eds. Oxford: Archaeopress, pp 59-82.
  • Sharman J, Albanese J. 2018. Bioarchaeology and Identified Skeletal Collections: Problems and Potential Solutions. In Identified Skeletal Collections: the Testing Ground of Anthropology. Charlotte Henderson and Francisca Alves Cardoso, eds. Oxford: Archaeopress, pp 83-114.
  • Mullins R, Albanese J. 2018. Estimating Biological Characteristics with Virtual Laser Data. Journal of Forensic Sciences 63:815-823.
  • Albanese J, Osley SE, Tuck A. 2016. Do group-specific equations provide the best estimates of stature? Forensic Science International 261:154-158.
  • Albanese J, Tuck A, Gomes J, Cardoso HFV. 2016. An Alternative Approach for Estimating Stature from Long Bones That Is Not Population- or Group-Specific. Forensic Science International 259:59-68.
  • Cardoso HFV, Marinho L, Albanese J. 2016. Relationship between Cadaver, Living and Forensic Stature: A Review of Current Knowledge and a Test using a Sample of Adult Portuguese Males. Forensic Science International 258: 55-63.
  • Albanese J. 2013. A method for determining sex using the clavicle, humerus, radius and ulna. Journal of Forensic Science 58: 1413-1419.
  • Albanese J., Osley SE, Tuck A. 2012. Do century-specific equations provide better estimates of stature? A test of the 19th - 20th-century boundary for the stature estimation feature in Fordisc 3.0. Forensic Science International 219: 286-288.
  • Albanese J. 2010. A Critical Review of the Methodology for the Study of Secular Change Using Skeletal Data. In Ellis C, Ferris N, Timmins P, White C (eds). Papers in Honour of Michael Spence. London, Ontario. Ontario Archaeological Society Occasional Publication No 9. p. 139-155.
  • Albanese J, Eklics G, Tuck A. 2008. A metric Method for Sex Determination Using the Proximal Femur and Fragmentary Hipbone. Journal of Forensic Sciences 53: 1283-1288.
  • Albanese J, Saunders SR. 2006. Is it Possible to Escape Racial Typology in Forensic Identification? In Schmitt A, Cunha E, Pinheiro J (eds). Forensic Anthropology and Medicine: Complementary Sciences From Recovery to Cause of Death. Totowa, NJ: Humana Press. p. 281-315.
  • Albanese J. 2006. Options for Forensic identification of Military Personnel and Civilian Employees of the Department of National Defence, Canada (Final Report May 29, 2006). Prepared for the Department of National Defence, Canada. (43 pages)
  • Hunt DR, Albanese J. 2005. The History and Demographic Composition of the Robert J. Terry Anatomical Collection. American Journal of Physical Anthropology 127: 406-417.
  • Albanese J, Cardoso HFV, Saunders SR. 2005. Universal Methodology for Developing Univariate Sample-Specific Sex Determination Methods: An Example Using the Epicondylar Breadth of the Humerus. Journal of Archaeological Science. 32: 143-152.
  • Albanese J. 2003. A Metric Method for Sex Determination Using the Hipbone and Femur. Journal of Forensic Sciences 48: 263-273.