Being ‘In Sync’–Is Interactional Synchrony The Key To Understanding The Social Brain?

Author(s): Annett Schirmer, Merle Fairhurst, Stefanie Hoehl
Abstract: The past couple of decades produced a surge of interest in interaction synchrony. Moving from the study of behavioral coordination to investigating the coordination of psychophysiological and brain activity, relevant research has tackled a broad range of interactional settings with a multitude of measurement and analysis tools. This method diversity produced a host of interesting results converging on the fact that individuals engaged in social exchange tend to temporally align external as well as internal processes. Moreover, there appears to be a reciprocal relationship between the individuals’ affective bond and the extent of synchronization, which together benefit interaction outcomes. Notably, however, the current breadth of study approaches creates challenges for the field, including how to compare findings and how to develop a theoretical framework that unites and directs ongoing research efforts. More concerted efforts are called for to achieve the conceptual and methodological clarity needed to answer core questions and enabling a balanced pursuit of both synchronous and asynchronous processes.
Organisation(s): Department of Developmental and Educational Psychology
External organisation(s): Chinese University of Hong Kong, Universität der Bundeswehr München, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München
Journal: Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience
Volume: 16
Pages: 1-4
No. of pages: 4
ISSN: 1749-5016
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/scan/nsaa148
Publication date: 10-2020
Austrian Fields of Science 2012: 501005 Developmental psychology
Keywords
ASJC Scopus subject areas: Experimental and Cognitive Psychology, Cognitive Neuroscience
Portal url: https://ucris.univie.ac.at/portal/en/publications/being-in-syncis-interactional-synchrony-the-key-to-understanding-the-social-brain(723a6916-61d8-4108-94d5-6a881a4cb476).html