TY - JOUR

T1 - Interpersonal Physiological Synchrony Predicts Group Cohesion

AU - Tomashin, Alon

AU - Gordon, Ilanit

AU - Wallot, Sebastian

N1 - Funding Information: SW acknowledges funding from the German Research Foundation (DFG; 442405852 and 442405919). IG acknowledges funding from the Israel Science Foundation (ISF; 2096/15; 434/21). Publisher Copyright: Copyright © 2022 Tomashin, Gordon and Wallot.

PY - 2022/7/12

Y1 - 2022/7/12

N2 - A key emergent property of group social dynamic is synchrony–the coordination of actions, emotions, or physiological processes between group members. Despite this fact and the inherent nested structure of groups, little research has assessed physiological synchronization between group members from a multi-level perspective, thus limiting a full understanding of the dynamics between members. To address this gap of knowledge we re-analyzed a large dataset (N = 261) comprising physiological and psychological data that were collected in two laboratory studies that involved two different social group tasks. In both studies, following the group task, members reported their experience of group cohesion via questionnaires. We utilized a non-linear analysis method-multidimensional recurrence quantification analysis that allowed us to represent physiological synchronization in cardiological interbeat intervals between group members at the individual-level and at the group-level. We found that across studies and their conditions, the change in physiological synchrony from baseline to group interaction predicted a psychological sense of group cohesion. This result was evident both at the individual and the group levels and was not modified by the context of the interaction. The individual- and group-level effects were highly correlated. These results indicate that the relationship between synchrony and cohesion is a multilayered construct. We re-affirm the role of physiological synchrony for cohesion in groups. Future studies are needed to crystallize our understanding of the differences and similarities between synchrony at the individual-level and synchrony at the group level to illuminate under which conditions one of these levels has primacy, or how they interact.

AB - A key emergent property of group social dynamic is synchrony–the coordination of actions, emotions, or physiological processes between group members. Despite this fact and the inherent nested structure of groups, little research has assessed physiological synchronization between group members from a multi-level perspective, thus limiting a full understanding of the dynamics between members. To address this gap of knowledge we re-analyzed a large dataset (N = 261) comprising physiological and psychological data that were collected in two laboratory studies that involved two different social group tasks. In both studies, following the group task, members reported their experience of group cohesion via questionnaires. We utilized a non-linear analysis method-multidimensional recurrence quantification analysis that allowed us to represent physiological synchronization in cardiological interbeat intervals between group members at the individual-level and at the group-level. We found that across studies and their conditions, the change in physiological synchrony from baseline to group interaction predicted a psychological sense of group cohesion. This result was evident both at the individual and the group levels and was not modified by the context of the interaction. The individual- and group-level effects were highly correlated. These results indicate that the relationship between synchrony and cohesion is a multilayered construct. We re-affirm the role of physiological synchrony for cohesion in groups. Future studies are needed to crystallize our understanding of the differences and similarities between synchrony at the individual-level and synchrony at the group level to illuminate under which conditions one of these levels has primacy, or how they interact.

KW - cohesion

KW - group-level synchrony

KW - individual-level-synchrony

KW - physiological synchrony

KW - recurrence quantification analysis

KW - Psychology

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85134880706&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.3389/fnhum.2022.903407

DO - 10.3389/fnhum.2022.903407

M3 - Journal articles

C2 - 35903785

AN - SCOPUS:85134880706

VL - 16

JO - Frontiers in Human Neuroscience

JF - Frontiers in Human Neuroscience

SN - 1662-5161

M1 - 903407

ER -