Interpersonal neural synchrony when predicting others’ actions during a game of rock-paper-scissors
- Author(s)
- Ezgi Kayhan, Trinh Nguyen, Daniel Matthes, Miriam Langeloh, Christine Michel, Jing Jiang, Stefanie Hoehl
- Abstract
As members of a social species, we spend most of our time interacting with others. In interactions, we tend to mutually align our behavior and brain responses to communicate more effectively. In a semi-computerized version of the Rock-Paper-Scissors game, we investigated whether people show enhanced interpersonal neural synchronization when making explicit predictions about others’ actions. Across four experimental conditions, we measured the dynamic brain activity using the functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) hyperscanning method. Results showed that interpersonal neural synchrony was enhanced when participants played the game together as they would do in real life in comparison to when they played the game on their own. We found no evidence of increased neural synchrony when participants made explicit predictions about others’ actions. Hence, neural synchrony may depend on mutual natural interaction rather than an explicit prediction strategy. This study is important, as it examines one of the presumed functions of neural synchronization namely facilitating predictions.
- Organisation(s)
- Department of Developmental and Educational Psychology
- External organisation(s)
- Italian Institute of Technology, Universität Potsdam, Max-Planck-Institut für Kognitions- und Neurowissenschaften, Leipzig University of Applied Sciences, Universität Leipzig, University of Iowa, Scientific Software Center
- Journal
- Scientific Reports (Nature Publisher Group)
- Volume
- 12
- No. of pages
- 11
- ISSN
- 2045-2322
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-16956-z
- Publication date
- 07-2022
- Peer reviewed
- Yes
- Austrian Fields of Science 2012
- 501014 Neuropsychology, 501011 Cognitive psychology
- Keywords
- ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General
- Portal url
- https://ucrisportal.univie.ac.at/en/publications/f7e46700-e6c5-41e9-8c90-ff8e2aa9ac23