Repetitive behaviors

Recent articles

Child sitting on a trampoline.

Study questions DSM-5’s combining of autism traits

Sensory traits and restricted and repetitive behaviors are best understood as distinct but related characteristics, the new work suggests.

By Lauren Schenkman
23 July 2026 | 5 min read
Research image of X-linked RNAs in male mice.

Noncoding RNA sways core autism traits in mice

Small deletions in an X-linked RNA alter social and repetitive behaviors in male mice without broadly affecting learning or memory.

By Giorgia Guglielmi
11 June 2026 | 4 min read
Two rhesus macaque monkeys.

Vasopressin boosts sociability in solitary monkeys

Inhaling the hormone did not increase aggression in unsociable rhesus macaques and appears to help the animals remember faces and reciprocate friendly behaviors.

By Charles Q. Choi
25 November 2024 | 5 min read
A research image of X chromosomes with Fragile X syndrome

Understanding fragile X syndrome

Just in time for Fragile X Awareness Month, The Transmitter rounds up notable coverage.

By Daisy Yuhas
4 July 2024 | 2 min read
A person stands in front of a neatly organized dresser drawer.

Teasing apart insistence on sameness with Mirko Uljarević

The hallmark autism trait has multiple facets, Uljarević and his colleagues have found.

By Lauren Schenkman
30 October 2023 | 6 min read
An illustration of Brian Boyd

Brian Boyd, classroom-based interventions and the importance of representation

The leader of the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute talks about what drew him into the autism field, and his departure from — and return to — the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

By Brady Huggett
1 October 2023 | 65 min listen
A young boy sits alone on a bench in a playground.

Mental health issues emerge with shifts in autism traits across childhood

Anxiety and other challenges autistic children experience may stem from an increase in social-communication issues and a decrease in repetitive behaviors from ages 6 to 11.

By Charles Q. Choi
27 September 2023 | 3 min read
Research image of neurons in mice.

Skewed signaling in striatum may spawn repetitive behaviors

Synaptic changes in the brain region could drive a core trait of fragile X syndrome, a new mouse study suggests.

By Holly Barker
6 September 2023 | 3 min read
Research images of protein synthesis in mice.

Neuronal deafness to stress may add to protein surplus in fragile X

A protective pathway that pauses protein synthesis is muted in a mouse model of fragile X syndrome, according to a new study.

By Holly Barker
29 August 2023 | 3 min read
Photograph of a family of rhesus macaque monkeys.

Father’s genes may drive sociability in male monkeys

The findings in rhesus macaque monkeys may provide clues to sex differences in the heredity of social behavior in people.

By Charles Q. Choi
18 August 2023 | 3 min read

Explore more from The Transmitter

Illustration of two hands grasping a pink oval and a green oval, bordered on the left and right by columns of red ovals and multicolor and gray circles.

How new technologies can bring primatologists and systems neuroscientists together

The two groups study the same behavioral phenomena yet rarely interact or read each other's work—a mutual blind spot that weakens both fields. New technologies offer a chance to bring them together.

By Sjoerd Murris
15 October 2026 | 6 min read
Fiona Sanderson photo illustration.

Creating community through grant support

Fiona Sanderson, a senior program manager at the Brain Canada Foundation, shares how she got into grant administration and how she helps connect researchers with funding and one another.

By Katie Moisse
14 October 2026 | 7 min read
Illustration of the brain processing different shapes.

This paper changed my life: A first glimpse into the ‘middle’ of brain processing

Work by Jeffrey Moran and Robert Desimone showed that monkeys could focus their attention on different stimuli in their visual field without shifting their gaze. Their work marked a key milestone in the emergence of cognitive neuroscience.

By Earl K. Miller
14 October 2026 | 3 min read