Species-specific defense reactions and avoidance learning

Abstract Knowing where to find what kind of food, and when, is essential for survival and reproduction. Studying animals’ foraging strategies thus provides insights into the cognitive processes underlying real-world problem solving. We investigated whether free-ranging Guinea baboons ( Papio papio ) keep track of the spatio-temporal availability of a preferred food resource, the Natal orange ( Strychnos spinosa ). An exceptional wildfire that destroyed most ripe fruits in 2019 provided a quasi-experimental opportunity to assess whether Guinea baboons flexibly adjusted their space use to an unexpected change in resource availability or instead continued to follow habitual routines. The animals’ space use patterns shifted significantly following the wildfire. After one single visit, they stopped going to the area during the period when Natal oranges would normally be available. In the following year, when Natal oranges were available again, the baboons resumed regular space use patterns. We also assessed travel linearity, speed, and departure time from sleeping sites towards the target area with and without ripe fruit. Guinea baboons travelled more linearly, 14% faster, and ca. 40 min earlier toward the target area when S. spinosa was in season than when it was not. In conclusion, Guinea baboons rapidly adjusted their space use patterns in response to changes in the availability of a high-value food resource. These results underscore their capacity for flexible, reward-sensitive decision-making and goal-directed foraging.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is one of the most common disabilities in South African schools. However, there is still limited information about children with ASD and their schooling needs in South Africa. Teachers may find it particularly taxing to address behavioral challenges while simultaneously seeking to provide fair and accessible learning opportunities for all learners. This study identifies effective behavioural strategies to help manage the challenging behaviour of learners with ASD. The study conducted observations and semi-structured interviews as part of a qualitative multiple-case study design. The data were analysed inductively, and the results revealed that teachers relied largely on their own informal strategies. These included attempts to meet the child's individual needs, providing positive reinforcement to improve behavioural regulation, practicing positive communication, and using structured routines and regulation breaks. The implementation of these strategies was carried out without formal training or systematic guidance. Learner facilitators also provided valuable support to learners with ASD. These approaches address the inclusion of learners with unique learning capabilities in mainstream learning environments through teacher initiative. This was done to address behavioural challenges in populations with limited systemic support. Given the exploratory, small-scale nature of this study, findings are intended to offer in-depth insight rather than generalisable conclusions. Additionally, recommendations are provided to assist mainstream schools and teacher training.

This study aims to explain the implementation of the hidden curriculum through school habituation in shaping students' disciplined character at MTs Al-Quraniyah Manna, South Bengkulu Regency. The hidden curriculum refers to values instilled in students through school culture, teacher role modeling, rules, and daily habits that are not included in the formal curriculum. This study employed a qualitative approach classified as descriptive research. Data were collected through observation, interviews, and documentation, and analyzed using the Miles and Huberman interactive model, which includes data collection, condensation, display, and conclusion drawing/verification. The findings reveal that the hidden curriculum is implemented through two primary habituation activities: the TAKRIR program (daily Qur'anic muroja'ah before classes) and congregational Dhuhr prayer conducted regularly from Monday to Thursday at the Maria Affan Mosque. Three main mechanisms contribute to the formation of students' disciplined character: behavioral habituation through consistent daily routines, teacher role modeling through active participation and direct guidance, and the establishment of a strong religious school culture. The results indicate improvements in students' punctuality, compliance with school rules, orderliness during worship, and intrinsic awareness to fulfill obligations without coercion. Therefore, the hidden curriculum through sustained religious habituation serves as an effective strategy for building students' disciplined character at MTs Al-Quraniyah Manna.

Transphobia can be understood as a set of practices that produce discrimination, exclusion, and violence against transgender people and transvestites, selecting their behavioral repertoires under aversive control. In the field of Behavior Analysis, Brazilian production on the subject remains limited and poorly systematized. This study aimed to integrate behavioral analysis research on the contingencies to which transgender people are subjected in Brazil. A systematic review of the literature was conducted according to PRISMA 2020, with searches in journals in the field and on Google Scholar. After applying the eligibility criteria, six studies were included. The findings indicate convergence in the understanding of transphobia as a process sustained by coercive contingencies that produce functional effects such as escape, avoidance, and psychological distress. It is concluded that Behavior Analysis offers relevant contributions to the functional understanding of transphobia and points to the need to expand socially committed research and interventions.Keywords: transphobia; behavioral-analysis; gender; LGBTQIA+; review

Behavior is a particular type of organic reaction. It is a cognitively guided reaction: it is an organic reaction guided by cognitions; and cognitions are registers of the internal states of an organism, or of the states of its environment, which allow that organism to functionally adjust the patterns that govern those particular organic reactions that are its behaviors. In turn, the mental states of a living being, its mind, are the set of its cognitive states; that is, the set of states resulting from cognitions that dispose it and allow it to behave in certain ways.