Journal information

The Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Learning and Cognition^® publishes experimental and theoretical papers concerning all aspects of animal learning and cognition. All domains of learning and cognition, broadly conceived, are within its purview. We seek empirical papers that provide insight into fundamental mechanisms of learning and cognition. Subjects may include human and non-human animals and may address any phase of the lifespan, from early development to senescence. Use of non-traditional species (including invertebrates) and use of multiple species with a comparative analysis are welcome, as are computational approaches to understand learning and cognition. Studies that include a neuroscience perspective are welcome as long as their connection to understanding fundamental principles of learning and cognition is clearly described in the paper.

The journal emphasizes empirical reports but may include focused review and perspective articles appropriate to the journal's content area. Inquiries about potential review and perspective topics can be addressed to the editor. The journal publishes brief communications, typically based on a single experiment that reports a significant new empirical or theoretical contribution, perhaps involving a novel technique or analytical approach. A commentary may occasionally be published consisting of nonempirical reports, theoretical notes, or criticism on topics pertinent to the journal’s concerns. To enhance the journal’s position as the venue for new and important developments in the field, the journal has launched a new section–Outlook–which discusses the most exciting current research on learning and cognition. These two-page papers are invited, brief, and readable, allowing readers to find current and important developments in the field and to quickly stay up to date on the latest findings, trends, and ideas.

Papers on the following topics are particularly welcome:

• associative learning
• non-associative learning
• instrumental and classical conditioning
• attention
• memory
• cognition
• sensation and perception
• emotion
• motivation
• development
• social behavior and social cognition
• comparative investigations
• behavioral economics and decision making
• spatial orientation and navigation
• time perception
• numerical competence
• categorization and concepts
• problem solving
• causal reasoning
• communication and symbol use
• embodied cognition
• innate bases of learning
• learning by observation, imitation, and instruction
• learning via cultural transmission and collective intelligence

The journal places a high emphasis on methodological soundness and analytic rigor, as well as on the reproducibility and replicability of research.

Disclaimer: APA and the editors of the Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Learning and Cognition assume no responsibility for statements and opinions advanced by the authors of its articles.