Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel.
The Azrieli National Institute for Human Brain Imaging and Research, Rehovot, Israel.
Sci Rep. 2022 Feb 24;12(1):3181. doi: 10.1038/s41598-022-06610-z.
Synchronization has been identified as a key aspect in social bonding. While synchronization could be maximized by increasing the predictability of an interaction, such predictability is in tension with individuals' level of interest, which is tied to the interaction's complexity and novelty. In this study, we tested the interplay between synchronization and interest. We asked 104 female dyads to play the Mirror Game, in which they had to move their hands as coordinately as possible, and then report how much they liked each other. Utilizing information theory and video processing tools, we found that a combination of movement synchronization and complexity explained liking almost two times better than movement synchronization alone. Moreover, we found that people initiated novel and challenging interactions, even though they paid a price-being less synchronized. Examining the interactions' dynamics, we found that people who liked each other moved in a more synchronized, complex, and novel manner during most of the interaction. This suggests that in addition to synchronization, maintaining interest may be critical for positive social bonding. Thus, we propose a new framework in which balancing synchronization and interest, rather than merely maximizing synchronization, optimizes the interaction quality.
同步已被确定为社交联系的关键方面。虽然通过增加互动的可预测性可以最大限度地提高同步性，但这种可预测性与个体的兴趣水平相冲突，而兴趣水平与互动的复杂性和新颖性有关。在这项研究中，我们测试了同步性和兴趣之间的相互作用。我们要求 104 对女性二人组玩镜像游戏，在游戏中，她们必须尽可能协调地移动双手，然后报告她们彼此的喜欢程度。利用信息论和视频处理工具，我们发现，运动同步和复杂性的结合比单独的运动同步解释喜好的程度要好两倍多。此外，我们发现，人们会主动发起新颖和具有挑战性的互动，尽管他们为此付出了代价——同步性降低。在考察互动的动态时，我们发现，彼此喜欢的人在互动的大部分时间里，以更同步、更复杂和更新颖的方式移动。这表明，除了同步性，保持兴趣对于积极的社交联系可能至关重要。因此，我们提出了一个新的框架，即在平衡同步性和兴趣的基础上，而不仅仅是最大化同步性，从而优化互动质量。
