Robert Cook

Robert Cook is Professor of Psychology at Tufts University School of Arts and Sciences and Interim Chair of Sociology. His NIH-supported research examines animal cognition, visual perception, discrimination learning, and memory mechanisms across species including pigeons, starlings, and humans.

Research investigates the perceptual and cognitive processes underlying object recognition, same-different concept learning, action recognition, temporal information processing, and equivalence class formation. Studies explore how animals form perceptual representations to guide learning and behavior.

Recent publications advance understanding of visual and auditory processing, sequential learning dynamics, perceptual grouping, and cross-species cognitive strategies. Work integrates computational modeling with behavioral experiments to characterize cognitive architecture.

Teaches courses on cognition origins and comparative psychology. Serves as Dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and publishes Comparative Cognition & Behavior Reviews. Developed online multimedia resources including Avian Visual Cognition and Animal Spatial Cognition cyberbooks.