Neuroscience Needs Behavior

Published in Neuron in 2017, this influential paper challenges the reductionist bias in neuroscience that relies heavily on neural manipulations and circuit analysis while treating behavior as secondary.

The authors argue that detailed behavioral analysis and task decomposition should precede neural investigation, proposing a more pluralistic approach where behavioral work provides understanding while neural interventions test causality.

The paper advocates for recognizing behavior as a foundational phenomenon worthy of independent study rather than merely an add-on to neuroscience research.