Research areas
Professor Byrne studies the evolution of cognitive and social behaviour, particularly the origins of distinctively human characteristics. Current projects focus on the gestural communication of the great apes, and on the social cognition of the African elephant. Previous work has included tactical deception in primates and its relationship to brain size and intelligence, welfare-related studies of cognition in the domestic pig, and the analysis of social learning and imitation. " (See https://sites.google.com/site/rwbyrnepsychology/publication-downloads for papers.) Postgraduates under his supervision have recently worked on gestural communication in chimpanzees, bonobos and orangutans; elephant social cognition; great ape manual feeding techniques, including the effect of disability on chimpanzee behaviour; and cognitive maps and travel coordination in monkeys and apes. Professor Byrne was awarded the British Psychology Society Book Award 1997 for his O.U.P. monograph "The Thinking Ape
Selected publications
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Open access
The what as well as the why of animal fun
Byrne, R. W., 5 Jan 2015, In: Current Biology. 25, 1, p. R2-R4 3 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Open access
The meanings of chimpanzee gestures
Hobaiter, C. & Byrne, R. W., 21 Jul 2014, In: Current Biology. 24, 14, p. 1596-1600 5 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Open access
African elephants (Loxodonta africana) recognize visual attention from face and body orientation
Smet, A. F. & Byrne, R. W., Jul 2014, In: Biology Letters. 10, 7, 4 p., 20140428.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Open access
Wild chacma baboons (Papio ursinus) remember single foraging episodes
Noser, R. & Byrne, R. W., Jul 2015, In: Animal Cognition. 18, 4, p. 921-929 9 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review