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Federica Amici

Research interests

My main research interests lie in the evolutionary processes that shape the distribution of behavior and cognition in animals, with a particular focus on primates and ungulates. I am currently working on the complexity and ontogeny of primate communication, and on the cross-cultural developmental study of children’s attitudes toward animals. I am also interested in ecology and conservation, with several international collaborations and a field site in Sulawesi (Macaca Maura Project), and I maintain a secret but intense love for psycholinguistics.

Publications

(peer-reviewed)

  • Amici, F., Röder, S., Kiess, W., Borte, M., Zenclussen, A. C., Widdig, A., & Herberth, G. In review. Maternal stress, child behavior and the protective role of older siblings. Developmental Psychology.
  • Amici, F., Widdig, A., von Fersen, L., Lopez Caicoya, A., & Majolo, B. In review. Intra-specific variation in the social behaviour of Barbary macaques. Frontiers in Psychology.
  • Beltrán Francés, V., Amici, F., Illa Maulany, R., Oka Ngakan, P., & Majolo, B. In review. Distribution of moor macaques (Macaca maura) in South Sulawesi and the impact of human activities. International Journal of Primatology.
  • Hernandez-Tienda, C., Majolo, B., Romero, T., Illa Maulany, R., Ngakan, P.O., Beltrán Francés, V., Gregorio Hernandez, E., Gomez-Melara, J.L., Llorente, M., & Amici, F. Accepted. Habituation process in two groups of wild moor macaques (Macaca maura). International Journal of Primatology.
  • Karimullah, K., Widdig, A., Shahrul, A.M.S., & Amici, F. In review. Paving the way to coexistence of human and non-human primates: a large-scale survey in Malaysia. Biodiversity and Conservation.
  • Padrell, M., Llorente, M., & Amici, F. In review. Invasive research on primates – time to turn the page. Animals.
  • Padrell, M., Amici, F., Córdoba, M.P., Giberga, A., Broekman, A., Almagro, S., & Llorente, M. In review. Evaluating the use of an artificial ant-fishing task as enrichment for sanctuary-housed chimpanzees: behavioral effects and impact on welfare. Animals.
  • Amici, F. 2021. Primate cognition. In: Vonk, J., & Shackelford, T. K. (Eds.). Encyclopedia of Animal Cognition and Behavior. Springer.
  • Anzá, S., Majolo, B., & Amici, F. 2021. The function of mounts in free-ranging Barbary macaques (Macaca sylvanus). American Journal of Primatology.
  • Amici, F., Sanchez-Amaro, A., & Cacchione, T. In press. Branching and working memory: a cross-linguistic approach. In: The Cambridge handbook of working memory and language (Eds. Schwiete, J.W., & Wen, Z.). Cambridge University Press.
  • Caicoya, A.L., Amici, F., Ensenyat, C., & Colell, M. 2021. Comparative cognition in three understudied ungulate species: European bison (Bison bonasus), forest buffalos (Syncerus caffer) and giraffes (Giraffa camelopardalis). Frontiers in Zoology.
  • Caicoya, A.L., Colell, M., Ensenyat, C., & Amici, F. 2021. Problem solving in European bison (Bison bonasus): two experimental approaches. Royal Society Open Science.
  • Castellano-Navarro, A., Macanás-Martínez, E., Xu, Z., Guillén-Salazar, F., MacIntosh, A.J.J., Amici, F., & Albiach-Serrano, A. 2021. Japanese macaques’ (Macaca fuscata) sensitivity to human gaze and visual perspective in contexts of threat, cooperation and competition. Scientific Reports.
  • Gomez-Melara, J.L., Acosta-Naranjo, R., Castellano-Navarro, A., Beltrán Francés, V., Lopez Caicoya, A., MacIntosh, A.J.J., Illa Maulany, R., Ngakan, P.O., & Amici, F. 2021. Dominance style predicts differences in food retrieval strategies. Scientific Reports, 11, 1-9.
  • Hernandez-Tienda, C., Beltrán Francés, V., Majolo, B., Romero, T., Illa Maulany, R., Ngakan, P.O., & Amici, F.2021. Reaction to snakes in wild moor macaques (Macaca maura). International Journal of Primatology.
  • Schaffer, A., Caicoya, A.L., Colell, M., Holland, R., von Fersen, L., Widdig, A., & Amici, F. 2021. Neophobia in 10 ungulate species – a comparative approach. Behavioural Ecology and Sociobiology.
  • Amici, F., Caicoya, A., Majolo, B., & Widdig, A. 2020. Innovation in wild Barbary macaques (Macaca sylvanus). Scientific Reports, 10, 4597.
  • Amici, F., Widdig, A., MacIntosh, A.J.J., Beltrán Francés, V., Castellano-Navarro, A., Lopez Caicoya, A., Karimullah, K., Illa Maulany, R., Ngakan, P.O., Hamzah, A. S., & Majolo, B. 2020. Dominance style only partially predicts differences in neophobia and social tolerance over food in four macaque species. Scientific Reports, 10, 1-10.
  • Beltrán Francés, V., Castellano-Navarro, A., Illa Maulany, R., Oka Ngakan, P., MacIntosh, A.J.J., Llorente, M., & Amici, F. 2020. Play behavior in immature moor macaques (Macaca maura) and Japanese macaques (Macaca fuscata). American Journal of Primatology, 82, e23192.
  • Cacchione, T., & Amici, F. 2020. Insights from comparative research on cultural learning. Progress in Brain Research, 254, 247-270.
  • Caicoya, A.L., Colell, M., Holland, R., Ensenyat, C., & Amici, F. 2020. A quantity discrimination study in giraffes (Giraffa camelopardalis): giraffes go for more. Animal Cognition.
  • Donnier, S., Kovacs, G., Oña, L.S., Bräuer, J., & Amici, F. 2020. Experience has a limited effect on humans’ ability to predict the outcome of social interactions in children, dogs and macaques. Scientific Reports, 10, 1-10.
  • Haun, D.B.M, Liebal, K., Amici, F., Bender, A., Bohn, M., et al. 2020. Ein Plädoyer für die Relevanz der vergleichenden Psychologie für das Verständnis menschlicher Entwicklung. Psychologische Rundschau, 71, 40-41.
  • Murray, L., Schaffner, C.M., Aureli, F., & Amici, F. 2020. There is no other monkey in the mirror for spider monkeys. Journal of Comparative Psychology, 134, 323-329.
  • Padrell, M., Riba, D., Ubeda, Y., Amici, F., & Llorente, M. 2020. Personality, cognition and behavior in chimpanzees: a new approach based on Eysenck’s model. Peer J, 8, e9707.
  • Pladevall, J., Mendes, N., Riba, D., Llorente, M., & Amici, F. 2020. No evidence of what-where-when memory in great apes (Pan troglodytes, Pan paniscus, Pongo abelii, and Gorilla gorilla). Journal of Comparative Psychology,134, 252-261.
  • Schaffer, A., Caicoya, A.L., Colell, M., Holland, R., Ensenyat, C., & Amici, F. 2020. Gaze following in ungulates: domesticated and non-domesticated species follow the gaze of both humans and conspecifics in an experimental context. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, 604904.
  • Amici, F., Holland, R., & Cacchione, T. 2019. Sloth bears (Melursus ursinus) fail to solve a novel problem even after social information and relevant experience are provided. Journal of Comparative Psychology, 133, 373-379.
  • Amici, F., Kulik, L., Langos, D., & Widdig, A. 2019. Growing into adulthood – how social bonds develop in immature rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 73, 18.
  • Amici, F., Lehmann, J., Widdig, A., & Majolo, B. 2019. A meta-analysis of inter-individual differences in innovation. Animal Behaviour, 155, 257-268.
  • Amici, F., Sanchez, A., Sebastian-Enesco, C., Allritz, M., Salazar, J., Cacchione, T., & Rossano, F. 2019. The word order of languages predicts native speakers’ working memory. Scientific Reports, 9, 1124.
  • Amici, F., Waterman, J., Kellermann, C. M., Karimullah, K., & Braeuer, J. 2019. The ability to recognize dog emotions depends on the cultural milieu in which we grow up. Scientific Reports, 9, 16414.
  • Amici, F., & Widdig, A. 2019. An evolutionary perspective on the development of primate sociality. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 73, 116.
  • Braeuer, J., Stenglein, K., & Amici, F. 2019. Hunting as a social dilemma: dogs’ and wolves’ performance in a conspecific cooperation task. Journal of Comparative Psychology, 134, 211-221.
  • Dell’Anna, F., Llorente, M., Schloegl, B., von Fersen, L., & Amici, F. 2019. Individual and food characteristics affect food retrieval in captive Guinea baboons (Papio papio). American Journal of Primatology, 82, 23078.
  • Amici, F. 2018. An evolutionary approach to the study of collaborative remembering. Topics in Cognitive Science, 11, 592-608.
  • Amici, F. 2018. Memories of emotional expressions in horses. Learning and Behavior, 47, 191-192.
  • Amici, F., Call, J., Brosnan, S., Watzek, J., & Aureli, F. 2018. Social inhibition and behavioural flexibility when the context changes: A comparison across six primate species. Scientific Reports, 8, 3067.
  • Bräuer, J., & Amici, F. 2018. Fake or not: two prerequisites for jealousy. Animal Sentience, 22, 18.
  • Bueno-Guerra, N., & Amici, F. 2018. The concept of umwelt in experimental animal cognition. In: Field and laboratory methods in animal cognition: a comparative guide. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.
  • Caicoya, A. L., Amici, F., Ensenyat, C., & Colell Mimo, M. 2018. Object permanence in Giraffa camelopardalis: first steps in giraffes’ physical cognition. Journal of Comparative Psychology, 133, 207-214.
  • Haemmerli, S., Thill, C., Amici, F., & Cacchione, T. 2018. Physical reasoning about occluded objects by domestic horses (Equus ferus caballus). Animal Cognition, 21, 441-446.
  • Minkner, M. M. I., Young, C., Amici, F., McFarland, R., Barrett, L., Grobler J. P., Henzi, S. P., & Widdig, A. 2018. Assessment of male reproductive skew via highly polymorphic STR markers in wild vervet monkeys, Chlorocebus pygerythrus. Journal of Heredity, 109, 780-790.
  • Amici, F., Cacchione, T., & Bueno-Guerra, N. 2017. Understanding of object properties by sloth bears (Melursus ursinus ursinus). Animal Behaviour, 134, 217-222.
  • Amici, F., Call, J., & Aureli, F. 2017. Co-existence of general intelligence and specialized modules. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 40, e196.
  • Amici, F., Colell Mimo, M., von Borell, C., & Bueno Guerra, N. 2017. Meerkats (Suricata suricatta) fail to prosocially donate food in an experimental set-up. Animal Cognition, 20, 1059-1066.
  • Sanchez, A., & Amici, F. 2016. Markets carefully interpreted. A reply on Kaburu, S. S. K. & Newton-Fisher, N. E. (2016). Animal Behaviour, 119, e7-e13.
  • Amici, F. 2015. The evolution and development of human cooperation. Interaction Studies, 16, 383-418.
  • Amici, F., & Bietti, L. 2015. Coordination, collaboration and cooperation: interdisciplinary perspectives. Interaction Studies, 16, vii-xii.
  • Barney, B., Amici, F., Call, J., Aureli, F., & Johnson, V.E. 2015. Joint Bayesian modeling of binomial and rank data for primate cognition. Journal of the American Statistical Association, 110, 573-582.
  • Cacchione, T., & Amici, F. 2015. Cohesion as a principle to perceive object-hood: does it rule for animate agents? Swiss Journal of Psychology, 74, 217-228.
  • Kulik, L., Amici, F., Langos, D., & Widdig, A. 2015. Sex differences in the development of social behaviour in rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). International Journal of Primatology, 36, 353-376.
  • Kulik, L., Amici, F., Langos, D., & Widdig, A. 2015. Sex differences in the development of aggressive behaviour in rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). International Journal of Primatology, 36, 764-789.
  • Sanchez, A., & Amici, F. 2015. Are primates out of the market? Animal Behaviour, 110, 51-60.
  • Amici, F. 2014. How New World monkeys see the social world. In: Monkeys: brain ontogeny, social and hormonal mechanisms and zoonotic diseases. Nova Science Publishers, Inc.
  • Amici, F., Aureli, F., & Call, J. 2014. Response facilitation in the four great apes: is there a role for empathy? Primates, 55, 113-118.
  • Amici, F., Aureli, F., Mundry, R., Sanchez Amaro, A., Mesa Barroso, A., Ferretti, J., & Call, J. 2014. Calculated reciprocity? A comparative test with six primate species. Primates, 55, 447-457.
  • Amici, F., & Braeuer, J. 2014. Monkey physical cognition: a comparative review. In: Monkeys: brain ontogeny, social and hormonal mechanisms and zoonotic diseases. Nova Science Publishers, Inc.
  • Amici, F., Visalberghi, E., & Call, J. 2014. Lack of prosociality in great apes, capuchin monkeys and spider monkeys: convergent evidence from two different experimental paradigms. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B, 281, 28120141699.
  • Burkart, J. M., Allon, O., Amici, F., Fichtel, C., Finkenwirth, C., et al. 2014. The evolutionary origin of human hyper-cooperation. Nature Communications, 5, 4747.
  • Cacchione, T., Indino, M., Fujita, K., Itakura, S., Matsuno, T., Schaub, S., & Amici, F. 2014. Universal ontology: attentive tracking of objects and substances across languages and over development. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 38, 481-486.
  • MacLean, E. L., Hare, B., Nunn, C. L., Addessi, E., Amici, F., et al. 2014. The evolution of self-control. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 11, 2140-2148.
  • Albiach-Serrano, A., Zickert, N., Braeuer, J., Cacchione, T. & Amici, F. 2012. The effect of domestication and ontogeny in swine cognition (Sus scrofa scrofa and S. s. domestica). Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 141, 25-35.
  • Amici, F., Barney, B., Johnson, V.E., Call, J., & Aureli, F. 2012. A modular mind? A test using individual data from seven primate species. PLoS ONE, 7(12): e51918. 
  • Amici, F., Call, J., & Aureli, F. 2012. Aversion to violation of expectations of food distribution: the role of social tolerance and relative dominance in seven primate species. Behaviour, 149, 345–368.
  • Amici, F., Call, J., & Aureli, F. 2010. Monkeys and apes: are their cognitions really so different? American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 143, 188-197.
  • Amici, F., Aureli, F., Visalberghi, E., & Call, J. 2009. Spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi) and capuchin monkeys (Cebus apella) follow gaze around barriers: evidence for perspective-taking? Journal of Comparative Psychology, 123, 368-374.
  • Amici, F., Call, J., & Aureli, F. 2009. Variation in withholding information in three monkey species. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B, 276, 3311-3318.
  • Amici, F., Aureli, F., & Call, J. 2008. Fission-fusion dynamics, behavioral flexibility and inhibitory control in primates. Current Biology, 18, 1415-1419.

Edited volumes

  • Amici, F., Widdig, A. (Eds.), 2019. An evolutionary perspective on the development of primate sociality. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology.
  • Amici, F., Bietti, L. (Eds.), 2015. Coordination, Collaboration and Cooperation. Interaction Studies.

 

Books

  • Bueno-Guerra, N., & Amici, F. (Eds.). 2018. Field and laboratory methods in animal cognition: a comparative guide. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.

Weiterführende Informationen

CV

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Macaca Maura Project

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