Greg Bryant
Professor and Chair
Department of Communication
Research
I am a cognitive scientist interested broadly in the evolution of vocal communication and social behavior. My research incorporates acoustic analyses of vocalizations, perception experiments, and cross-cultural field studies. Below are selected publications:
Neuenswander, K., Bryant, G. A., & Stroessner, S. A. (2024). Gendered and machine-like features in voices affect social judgments. In 33rd IEEE International Conference on Robot and Human Interactive Communication (RO-MAN), pp. 1408-1415. IEEE. PDF
Bryant, G. A., & Dale, R. (2024). Language, communication, and social cognition. In D. Carlston, K. Johnson, & K. Hugenberg (Eds.). The Oxford handbook of social cognition (pp. 884-900). Oxford University Press. PDF
Neuenswander, K. L., Goodale, B. M., Bryant, G. A., & Johnson, K. L. (2024). Sex ratios in vocal ensembles affect perceptions of threat and belonging. Scientific Reports, 14, 14575. PDF
Neuenswander, K. L., Gillespie, G. S., Lick, D. J., Bryant, G. A., & Johnson, K. L. (2024). Social evaluative implications of sensory adaptation to human voices. Royal Society Open Science, 11, 231348. PDF
Bryant, G. A. (2024). Vocal strategies in verbal irony. In R. Gibbs & H. Colston (Eds.). Cambridge handbook of irony and thought (pp. 197-215). Cambridge University Press. PDF
Anikin, A., Valente, D., Pisanski, K., Cornec, C., Bryant, G. A., & Reby, D. (2024). The role of loudness in vocal intimidation. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 153(2), 511-530. PDF
Cox, C., Bergmann, C., Fowler, E., Keren-Portnoy, T., Roepstorff, A., Bryant, G., & Fusaroli, R. (2022). A systematic review and Bayesian meta-analysis of the acoustic features of infant-directed speech. Nature Human Behaviour, 6(10). PDF
Bryant, G. A., & Bainbridge, C. M. (2022). Laughter and culture. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B, 377, 20210179. PDF
Pisanski, K., Bryant, G. A., Cornec, C., Anikin, A., & Reby, D. (2022). Form follows function in human nonverbal vocalisations. Ethology Ecology & Evolution. PDF
Bryant, G. A. (2021). Vocal communication across cultures: Theoretical and methodological issues. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B, 376, 20200387. PDF
Winkler, S. L., & Bryant, G. A. (2021). Play vocalizations and human laughter: A comparative review. Bioacoustics, 30(5), 499-526. PDF
Mehr, S., Krasnow, M., Bryant, G. A., & Hagen, E. H. (2021). Origins of music in credible signaling. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 44, E60. PDF
Bryant, G. A., Wang, C. S., & Fusaroli, R. (2020). Recognizing affiliation in colaughter and cospeech. Royal Society Open Science, 7(10) 201092. PDF
Bryant, G. A. (2020). Rhythm and the body. In N. Dess (Ed.). A Multidisciplinary Approach to Embodiment: Understanding Human Being. Routledge. PDF
Dale, R., Bryant, G. A., Manson, J. H., & Gervais, M. M. (2020). Body synchrony in triadic interaction. Royal Society Open Science, 7(9), 200095. PDF
Bryant, G. A. (2020). Evolution, structure, and functions of human laughter. In K. Floyd & R. Weber (Eds.). Handbook of communication science and biology (pp. 63-77). Routledge. PDF
Bryant, G. A. (2020). The evolution of human vocal emotion. Emotion Review. 1754073920930791. PDF
Liuni, M., Ponsot, E., Bryant, G. A., & Aucouturier, J. J. (2020). Sound context modulates perceived vocal emotion. Behavioural Processes, 172. PDF
Pisanski, K., & Bryant, G. A. (2019). The evolution of voice perception. In N. S. Eidsheim & L. Meizel (Eds.), Oxford handbook of voice studies (pp. 269-300). Oxford University Press. PDF
Vouloumanos, A., & Bryant, G. A. (2019). Five-month-old infants detect affiliation in colaughter. Scientific Reports, 9, 4158. PDF
Bryant, G. A., Fessler, D. M. T., Fusaroli, R., et al. (2018). The perception of spontaneous and volitional laughter across 21 societies. Psychological Science, 29(9), 1515-1525. PDF
Bryant, G. A. (2018). Vocal communication. In T. K. Shackelford & V. A. Weekes-Shackelford (Eds.), Encyclopedia of evolutionary psychological science. Springer Nature. PDF
Bryant, G. A. (2018). Review of “Music as Biology” by Dale Purves. The Quarterly Review of Biology, 93(1), 42. PDF
Manson, J. H., Gervais, M. M., & Bryant, G. A. (2018). General trust impedes perception of self-reported primary psychopathy in thin slices of social interaction. PLoS ONE, 13(5), e0196729. PDF
Broesch, T., & Bryant, G. A. (2018). Fathers’ infant-directed speech in a small scale society. Child Development, 89(2), e29-e41. PDF
Blumstein, D. T., Whitaker, J., Kennen, J., & Bryant, G. A. (2017). Do birds differentiate between white noise and deterministic chaos? Ethology, 123(12), 966-973. PDF
Pietraszewski, D., Wertz, A., Bryant, G. A., & Wynn, K. (2017). Three-month-old human infants use vocal cues of body size. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 284(1856), 20170656. PDF
Bryant, G. A., Fessler, D. M., Fusaroli, R., Clint, E., Aarøe, L., Apicella, C. L., … & De Smet, D. (2016). Detecting affiliation in colaughter across 24 societies. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 113(17), 4682-4687. PDF
Bryant, G. A. (2015). Evolved computers with culture: Commentary on Barrett et al. Frontiers in Psychology 6, 1-2. PDF
Broesch, T., & Bryant, G. A. (2015). Prosody in infant-directed speech is similar across western and traditional cultures. Journal of Cognition and Development, 16(1), 31-43. PDF
Gibbs, R. W., Bryant, G. A., & Colston, H. L. (2014). Where is the humor in verbal irony? Humor: International Journal of Humor Research, 27(4), 575-595. PDF
Holbrook, C., Galperin, A., Fessler, D. M. T., Johnson, K. L., Bryant, G. A., & Haselton, M. G. (2014). If looks could kill: Anger judgments are intensified by affordances for doing harm. Emotion, 14(3), 455-461. PDF
Bryant, G. A., & Aktipis, C. A. (2014). The animal nature of spontaneous human laughter. Evolution and Human Behavior, 35(4), 327-335. PDF
Bryant, G. A. (2013). Animal signals and emotion in music: Coordinating affect across groups. Frontiers in Psychology, 4, 990, 1-13. PDF
Bryant, G. A. (2013). Review of “Curious Behavior: Yawning, Laughing, Hiccupping, and Beyond” by Robert Provine. The Quarterly Review of Biology, 88(4), 348-349. PDF
Flamson, T. J., & Bryant, G. A. (2013). Signals of humor: Encryption and laughter in social interaction. In M. Dynel (Ed.). Developments in linguistic humour theory (pp. 49-74). Amsterdam: John Benjamins. PDF
Manson, J. E., Bryant, G. A., Gervais, M., & Kline, M. (2013). Convergence of speech rate in conversation predicts cooperation. Evolution and Human Behavior, 34(6), 419-426. PDF
Bryant, G. A. (2012). Is verbal irony special? Language and Linguistics Compass, 6(11), 673-685. PDF
Blumstein, D., Bryant, G. A., & Kaye, P. (2012). The sound of arousal in music is context dependent. Biology Letters, 8, 744-747. PDF
Bryant, G. A., Liénard, P., & Barrett, H. C. (2012). Recognizing infant-directed speech across distant cultures: Evidence from Africa. Journal of Evolutionary Psychology, 10(2), 147-159. PDF
Flamson, T., Bryant, G. A., & Barrett, H. C. (2011). Prosody in spontaneous humor: Evidence for encryption. Pragmatics and Cognition, 19(2), 248-267. PDF
Bryant, G. A. (2011). Verbal irony in the wild. Pragmatics and Cognition, 19(2), 291-309. PDF
Sell, A., Bryant, G. A., Cosmides, L., Tooby, J., Sznycer, D., von Rueden, C., Krauss, A., & Gurven, M. (2010). Adaptations in humans for assessing physical strength from the voice. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 277. PDF
Bryant, G. A. (2010). Prosodic contrasts in ironic speech. Discourse Processes, 47(7), 545-566. PDF
Phillips-Silver, J., Aktipis, A., & Bryant, G. A. (2010). The ecology of entrainment: Foundations of coordinated rhythmic movement. Music Perception, 28(1), 3-14. PDF
Haselton, M. G., Bryant, G. A., Wilke, A., Frederick, D. A., Galperin, A., Frankenhuis, W. E., & Moore, T. (2009). Adaptive rationality: An evolutionary perspective on cognitive bias. Social Cognition, 27(5), 733-763. PDF
Bryant, G. A., & Haselton, M. G. (2009). Vocal cues of ovulation in human females. Biology Letters, 5, 12-15. PDF
Bryant, G. A., & Barrett, H. C. (2008). Vocal emotion recognition across disparate cultures. Journal of Cognition and Culture, 8, 135-148. PDF
Gibbs, R. W., & Bryant, G. A. (2008). Striving for optimal relevance when answering questions. Cognition, 106(1), 345-369. PDF
Bryant, G. A., & Barrett, H. C. (2007). Recognizing intentions in infant-directed speech: Evidence for universals. Psychological Science, 18(8), 746-751. PDF
Bryant, G. A. (2006). Review of “Figurative language comprehension: Social and cultural influences” by H. L. Colston & A. N. Katz (Eds.). Metaphor and Symbol, 21(1), 61-65. PDF
Cosmides, L., Tooby, J., Fiddick, L., & Bryant, G. A. (2005). Detecting cheaters. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 9(11), 505-506. PDF
Bryant, G. A., & Fox Tree, J. E. (2005). Is there an ironic tone of voice? Language and Speech, 48(3), 257-277. PDF
Hagen, E. H., & Bryant, G. A. (2003). Music and dance as a coalition signaling system. Human Nature, 14(1), 21-51. PDF
Bryant, G. A., & Fox Tree, J. E. (2002). Recognizing verbal irony in spontaneous speech. Metaphor and Symbol, 17(2), 99-117. PDF
Bryant, G. A., & Gibbs, R. W. (2002). You don’t say: Figurative language and thought. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 25(6), 678-679. PDF
Classes
WINTER 2024
Communication 126 – Evolution of Interpersonal Communication
An examination of current issues in interpersonal communication from the perspectives of evolutionary psychology and biology. Topics include the co-evolution of signaler and receiver adaptations, nonverbal communication, courtship behavior, indirect speech, and deception.
FALL 2022
Communication 200 – Theories in Communication Science
Graduate seminar: Exploration of theoretical and methodological approaches that bridge major areas of current interdisciplinary communication science research
FALL 2020
Communication 200 – Theories in Communication Science
WINTER 2020
Communication 100– Communication Science
Examination of fundamental principles of human communication. Topics include models of communication, levels of analysis in the behavioral sciences, cultural evolution, new media and big data, political communication, and the nature of art.
WINTER 2019
Communication 100 – Communication Theory
Communication 112 – Current Issues in Vocal Communication
Seminar examining contemporary issues in voice acoustics research. Topics include animal signaling, social communication, and speech production and perception.
FALL 2018
Communication 118 – Language and Music
Cognitive science exploration of structure, function, and aesthetics of language and music and their relationships to communication, cognition, and culture.
SUMMER 2018
Communication 100 – Communication Theory
WINTER 2018
Communication 100 – Communication Theory
Communication 112 – Current Issues in Vocal Communication
FALL 2017
Communication 126 – Evolution of Interpersonal Communication
Communication 118 – Language and Music
WINTER 2017
Communication Studies 100 – Communication Theory
FALL 2016
Communication Studies 126 – Evolution of Interpersonal Communication
SPRING 2016
Communication Studies 19-2 (Fiat Lux Seminar) – Finding Art in Science
Exploration of the intersection of scientific practice and artistic creativity.
Selected Media
Play vocalizations and human laughter
- https://www.discovermagazine.com/planet-earth/cackling-cows-and-snickering-stoats-animals-enjoy-a-good-giggle-now-and-then
- https://www.npr.org/2021/05/22/999491591/dozens-of-animals-laugh-too-study-shows
- https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/animal-emotions/202106/what-animals-say-each-other-when-they-play
Detecting friends and strangers in colaughter across cultures
- https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2016/04/11/473414068/ha-ha-ha-haha-the-sound-of-laughter-tells-more-than-you-think (audio)
- https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w3cswvx4 (audio at 6:00)
- https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/babies-know-the-difference-between-the-laughter-of-friends-and-strangers/
Recognizing affiliation in colaughter and cospeech
The perception of real and fake laughter
- https://www.npr.org/2014/05/08/310794138/how-to-tell-when-a-laugh-is-real-the-answer-is-in-a-breath (audio)
- https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2014/05/15/312560432/just-one-third-of-people-can-tell-if-youre-faking-that-laugh
- https://whyy.org/episodes/fake-vs-real-and-when-it-matters/ (audio at 39:40)
- https://time.com/88627/people-can-tell-when-youre-fake-laughing/
- https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2015/03/30/youre-not-fooling-everyone-with-your-pretend-laughter/
- https://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/23/opinion/sunday/the-science-of-the-fake-laugh.html
The sound of arousal in music
- https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2012/06/12/154853739/putting-fear-in-your-ears-what-makes-music-sound-scary/
- https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2012/07/study-distortion-in-rock-music-brings-out-the-animal-in-us/259421/
- https://slate.com/culture/2012/06/in-scientific-studies-of-music-whats-missing-is-the-culture.html
Women’s voices change across the ovulatory cycle
Recognizing intentions in infant-directed speech across cultures
Links
Departments and Centers
- UCLA Department of Communication
- UCLA Center for Behavior, Evolution, and Culture
- Animal Behavior @ UCLA
- UCLA Department of Anthropology
- UCLA Department of Psychology
- UCLA Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
- UCLA Department of Linguistics
- UCLA Bureau of Glottal Affairs
- UCSC Department of Psychology
- UCSB Center for Evolutionary Psychology
- UCLA Center for Language, Interaction, and Culture
- UC Merced Cognitive and Information Sciences
- UCLA Center for the Study of Women
- UC Museum of Paleontology – Understanding Evolution
Scholarly Associations and Resources
- Human Behavior and Evolution Society
- Animal Behavior Society
- International Society for Human Ethology
- European Human Behaviour and Evolution Association
- International Culture and Cognition Institute
- Psychonomic Society
- Acoustical Society of America
- International Speech Communication Association
- Society for Music Perception and Cognition
- Association for Psychological Science
- International Pragmatics Association
- Science Daily
Language, Speech, and Acoustics Resources
- Praat
- Using Praat for Linguistic Research
- VoiceSauce
- Soundgen
- VoiceLab
- Links to Speech Web Sites
- Speech Accents Archive
- Expressive Synthetic Speech Resource
- Phonetics – The Sound of American English
- Physclips Waves and Sound
- Acoustics and Vibrations Animations
- SoftSynth – Music and Computers
- Freesound
- Music Cognition Resource Center
- The Basics of Acoustics
- Every Noise At Once Music Genre Map
- Everyday Listening Sound Art
- Cornell Lab of Ornithology Animal Sound Archive
- Avisoft Bioacoustics
- TalkBank Database
- R FAQ
- Relevance Theory Online Bibliography
- Expressions and Sayings Index
- Endangered Languages – The Alliance for Linguistic Diversity