Janice Weaver

Janice Weaver is a Professor in the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences within the College of Arts, Sciences and Education at Ferris State University, specializing in experimental psychology with a focus on animal cognition in pigeons through a career spanning from 1995 to 2019.

Her educational background includes:

• PhD in Experimental Psychology from the University of Kentucky
• MA in Psychology from Georgia Southern University
• BA in Psychology from Berea College

Dr. Weaver's research centers on comparative psychology and animal learning mechanisms, investigating matching-to-sample tasks, transitive inference, symmetry training, and response requirement effects in pigeons. Her work provides critical insights into cognitive processes in non-human animals and foundational contributions to behavioral theory, particularly in stimulus equivalence and value transfer phenomena.

Her publication record reveals consistent research themes across decades, with recent work (2018-2019) emphasizing functional equivalence through sample response requirements, while earlier studies (2004-1995) established key principles in time perception, transitive inference, and value transfer in avian cognition.

Dr. Weaver actively mentors undergraduate researchers, as evidenced by her co-authorship on student-led projects presented at the CAS Student Awards Ceremony, Michigan Undergraduate Psychology Research Conference, and Midwestern Psychological Association meetings, demonstrating her commitment to developing the next generation of behavioral scientists.