The overarching research question is to understand the principles of complex cognition by comparing different species that show cognitive complexity. One fruitful idea is to investigate the underlying cognitive mechanisms in vastly different animal groups such as corvids and great apes in order to understand if they also share similarities with such building blocks as they do with complex cognition. Such investigations of independently evolved cognitive skills can help us understand the principles of complex cognition. With this overarching question in mind, I work mainly with corvid birds as well as with parrots and great apes in their ability of self-control and prospective cognition. Self-control is a fundamental mechanism that plays role in various cognitive skills such as decision-making and planning, and we investigate it with the above-mentioned species using both motor self-regulation as well as intertemporal choice tasks. I also investigate the flexibility behind corvid planning skills by testing ravens (Corvus corax) in a non-caching context, using bartering and tool-use tasks. These experiments test the flexibility component because success in such tasks are hard to be explained by specific adaptations as those tasks are highly artificial. Documenting such flexibility component is important for the independent evolution of prospective skills as such skills have recenty been documented on great apes.

Books (1)

• Kabadayi, C. (2017). Planning and inhibition in corvids. mediatryck, Lund University. Dissertation.
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Articles (7)

• Kabadayi, C., Bobrowicz, K. & Osvath, M. (2018). The detour paradigm in animal cognition. Animal Cognition, 21, 21-35. Springer.
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• Osvath, M. & Kabadayi, C. (2018). Contrary to the Gospel, Ravens Do Plan Flexibly. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 22, 474-475. Elsevier.
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• Kabadayi, C. & Osvath, M. (2017). Ravens parallel great apes in flexible planning for tool-use and bartering. Science, 357, 202-204. The American Association for the Advancement of Science.
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• Kabadayi, C., Jacobs, I. & Osvath, M. (2017). The Development of Motor Self-Regulation in Ravens. Frontiers in Psychology, 8. Frontiers.
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• Kabadayi, C., Krasheninnikova, A., O'neill, L., van de Weijer, J., Osvath, M. & von Bayern, A. (2017). Are parrots poor at motor self‐regulation or is the cylinder task poor at measuring it?. Animal Cognition, 20, 1137-1146. Springer.
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• Kabadayi, C., Taylor, L., von Bayern, A. & Osvath, M. (2016). Ravens, New Caledonian crows and jackdaws parallel great apes in motor self-regulation despite smaller brains. Royal Society Open Science. Royal Society.
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• Osvath, M., Kabadayi, C. & Jacobs, I. (2014). Independent evolution of similar complex cognitive skills : the importance of embodied degrees of freedom. Animal behavior and cognition, 1, 249-264. Sciknow Publications Ltd..
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