Prof. Harvati is a paleoanthropologist specializing in Neanderthal evolution, modern human origins and the application of 3-D geometric morphometric methods to paleoanthropology.  

Her broader research interests include primate and human evolution; evolutionary theory; evolution of primate and human life-history; the relationship of morphological variability to population history and the environment; and Paleolithic archaeology. She has conducted fieldwork in Europe and Africa, and recently directed paleoanthropological fieldwork in Greece and Tanzania.