Comparative Learning and Cognition

"The book by Papini and Leising constitutes a valuable and comprehensive contribution to the study of the relationship between evolution and behavior across different species. It presents an updated and thorough view of comparative psychology, addressing evolutionary perspectives on learning processes and animal cognition. I highly recommend this book for researchers and students seeking to deepen their understanding of the evolution of biological, psychological, and social aspects related to animal behavior."

Luis Gonzalo de la Casa, professor at Universidad de Sevilla, Seville, Spain

"This book offers a fresh and insightful perspective on comparative learning and cognition, grounding current research within a robust evolutionary framework. Clearly written and highly engaging, it will be an invaluable resource for both graduate seminars and advanced undergraduate courses. I look forward to incorporating it into my teaching."

Suzanne E. MacDonald, professor at York University, Toronto, Canada

"This textbook offers a precise and balanced introduction to learning and cognition across species. By focusing on behavioral mechanisms—such as association, reinforcement, timing, categorization, and communication—and grounding them in neurobiological evidence, it serves as a reliable resource for both students and experts in comparative cognition."

Tetsuro Matsuzawa, primatologist and former director of the Kyoto University Primate Research Institute

"Papini and Leising integrate evolution thoroughly into their updated discussion of animal learning, scaffolding the reader's understanding much like evolutionary processes scaffolded cognition from simple building blocks to more complex processes. This book presents a much needed integrative approach to comparative cognition and is a welcome addition to a sparse selection of comparative texts."

Jennifer Vonk, Professor of Psychology at Oakland University, Rochester, MI, USA

"This is a remarkable book, remarkable for its solid grounding in evolutionary theory, for the breadth of its coverage (from behavioral plasticity in bacteria to language learning in primates), and for the depth of its scholarship, integrating behavioral and neural levels of analysis."

Michael Domjan, The University of Texas at Austin, TX, USA, and Doctorem Honoris Causa, Konrad Lorenz University, Bogotá, Colombia