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Marriot Haresign I, A M Phillips E, V Wass S. Why behaviour matters: Studying inter-brain coordination during child-caregiver interaction. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2024; 67:101384. [PMID: 38657470 PMCID: PMC11059326 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2024.101384] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2023] [Revised: 03/26/2024] [Accepted: 04/15/2024] [Indexed: 04/26/2024] Open
Abstract
Modern technology allows for simultaneous neuroimaging from interacting caregiver-child dyads. Whereas most analyses that examine the coordination between brain regions within an individual brain do so by measuring changes relative to observed events, studies that examine coordination between two interacting brains generally do this by measuring average intra-brain coordination across entire blocks or experimental conditions. In other words, they do not examine changes in inter-brain coordination relative to individual behavioural events. Here, we discuss the limitations of this approach. First, we present data suggesting that fine-grained temporal interdependencies in behaviour can leave residual artifact in neuroimaging data. We show how artifact can manifest as both power and (through that) phase synchrony effects in EEG and affect wavelet transform coherence in fNIRS analyses. Second, we discuss different possible mechanistic explanations of how inter-brain coordination is established and maintained. We argue that non-event-locked approaches struggle to differentiate between them. Instead, we contend that approaches which examine how interpersonal dynamics change around behavioural events have better potential for addressing possible artifactual confounds and for teasing apart the overlapping mechanisms that drive changes in inter-brain coordination.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Sam V Wass
- Department of Psychology, University of East London, London, UK
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2
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Zheng C, Tversky B. Putting it Together, Together. Cogn Sci 2024; 48:e13405. [PMID: 38303504 DOI: 10.1111/cogs.13405] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2023] [Revised: 12/15/2023] [Accepted: 01/08/2024] [Indexed: 02/03/2024]
Abstract
People are not as fast or as strong as many other creatures that evolved around us. What gives us an evolutionary advantage is working together to achieve common aims. Coordinating joint action begins at a tender age with such cooperative activities as alternating babbling and clapping games. Adult joint activities are far more complex and use multiple means of coordination. Joint action has attracted qualitative analyses by sociolinguists, cognitive scientists, and philosophers as well as empirical analyses and theories by cognitive scientists. Here, we analyze how joint action is spontaneously coordinated from start to finish in a novel complex real-life joint activity, assembling a piece of furniture, a task that captures the essentials of joint action, collaborators, things in the world, and communicative devices. Pairs of strangers assembled a TV cart from a stack of parts and a photo of the completed cart. Coordination prior to each assembly action was coded as explicit, using speech or gesture, or implicit, actions that both advanced the task and communicated the next step. Initial planning relied on explicit communication about structure, but not action nor division of labor, which were improvised. That served to establish a joint representation of the goal that informed actions and monitored progress. As assembly progressed, coordination was increasingly implicit, through actions alone. Joint action is a dynamic interplay of explicit and implicit signaling with respect to things in the world to coordinate ongoing progress, guided by a shared representation of the goal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chen Zheng
- Department of Human Development, Teachers College, Columbia University
| | - Barbara Tversky
- Department of Human Development, Teachers College, Columbia University
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University
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3
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Ramírez-Moreno MA, Cruz-Garza JG, Acharya A, Chatufale G, Witt W, Gelok D, Reza G, Contreras-Vidal JL. Brain-to-brain communication during musical improvisation: a performance case study. F1000Res 2023; 11:989. [PMID: 37809054 PMCID: PMC10558998 DOI: 10.12688/f1000research.123515.3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/01/2023] [Indexed: 10/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Understanding and predicting others' actions in ecological settings is an important research goal in social neuroscience. Here, we deployed a mobile brain-body imaging (MoBI) methodology to analyze inter-brain communication between professional musicians during a live jazz performance. Specifically, bispectral analysis was conducted to assess the synchronization of scalp electroencephalographic (EEG) signals from three expert musicians during a three-part 45 minute jazz performance, during which a new musician joined every five minutes. The bispectrum was estimated for all musician dyads, electrode combinations, and five frequency bands. The results showed higher bispectrum in the beta and gamma frequency bands (13-50 Hz) when more musicians performed together, and when they played a musical phrase synchronously. Positive bispectrum amplitude changes were found approximately three seconds prior to the identified synchronized performance events suggesting preparatory cortical activity predictive of concerted behavioral action. Moreover, a higher amount of synchronized EEG activity, across electrode regions, was observed as more musicians performed, with inter-brain synchronization between the temporal, parietal, and occipital regions the most frequent. Increased synchrony between the musicians' brain activity reflects shared multi-sensory processing and movement intention in a musical improvisation task.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mauricio A. Ramírez-Moreno
- School of Engineering and Sciences, Mechatronics Department, Tecnologico de Monterrey, Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, 64849, Mexico
- Noninvasive Brain-Machine Interface Systems Laboratory, NSF IUCRC BRAIN, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, 77004, USA
| | - Jesús G. Cruz-Garza
- Noninvasive Brain-Machine Interface Systems Laboratory, NSF IUCRC BRAIN, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, 77004, USA
| | - Akanksha Acharya
- Noninvasive Brain-Machine Interface Systems Laboratory, NSF IUCRC BRAIN, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, 77004, USA
| | - Girija Chatufale
- Noninvasive Brain-Machine Interface Systems Laboratory, NSF IUCRC BRAIN, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, 77004, USA
- University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, 90095, USA
| | - Woody Witt
- Moores School of Music, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, 77004, USA
- Houston Community College, Houston, Texas, 77004, USA
| | - Dan Gelok
- Moores School of Music, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, 77004, USA
| | | | - José L. Contreras-Vidal
- Noninvasive Brain-Machine Interface Systems Laboratory, NSF IUCRC BRAIN, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, 77004, USA
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4
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Demos AP, Palmer C. Social and nonlinear dynamics unite: musical group synchrony. Trends Cogn Sci 2023; 27:1008-1018. [PMID: 37277276 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2023.05.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2022] [Revised: 05/07/2023] [Accepted: 05/09/2023] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Synchronization, the human tendency to align behaviors in time with others, is necessary for many survival skills. The ability to synchronize actions with rhythmic (predictable) sound patterns is especially well developed in music making. Recent models of synchrony in musical ensembles rely on pairwise comparisons between group members. This pairwise approach to synchrony has hampered theory development, given current findings from social dynamics indicating shifts in members' influence within larger groups. We draw on social theory and nonlinear dynamics to argue that emergent properties and novel roles arise in musical group synchrony that differ from individual or pairwise behaviors. This transformational shift in defining synchrony sheds light on successful outcomes as well as on disruptions that cause negative behavioral outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander P Demos
- Department of Psychology, University of Illinois Chicago, 1007 W Harrison St., Chicago, IL 60607, USA.
| | - Caroline Palmer
- Department of Psychology, McGill University, 1205 Dr Penfield Ave., Montreal, QC H3A 1B1, Canada.
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5
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Xie E, Li K, Gu R, Zhang D, Li X. Verbal information exchange enhances collective performance through increasing group identification. Neuroimage 2023; 279:120339. [PMID: 37611814 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2023.120339] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2023] [Revised: 08/05/2023] [Accepted: 08/21/2023] [Indexed: 08/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Information exchange is a key factor in the attainment of collective outcomes and the navigation of social life. In the current study, we investigated whether and how information exchange enhanced collective performance by combining behavioral and neuroimaging approaches from the perspective of multiparticipant neuroscience. To evaluate collective performance, we measured the collaborative problem-solving abilities of triads working on a murder mystery case. We first found that verbal information exchange significantly enhanced collective performance compared to nonverbal exchange. Moreover, both group sharing and group discussion positively contributed to this effect, with group discussion being more essential. Importantly, group identification mediated the positive effect of verbal information exchange on collective performance. This mediation was supported by higher interactive frequency and enhanced within-group neural synchronization (GNS) in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC). Taken together, we provided a multiparticipant theoretical model to explain how verbal information exchange enhanced collective performance. Our findings deepen the insight into the workings of group decision-making.
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Affiliation(s)
- Enhui Xie
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Psychological Crisis Intervention, Affiliated Mental Health Center (ECNU), School of Psychology and Cognitive Science, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200062, China
| | - Keshuang Li
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Psychological Crisis Intervention, Affiliated Mental Health Center (ECNU), School of Psychology and Cognitive Science, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200062, China
| | - Ruolei Gu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Dandan Zhang
- Institute of Brain and Psychological Sciences, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, China
| | - Xianchun Li
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Psychological Crisis Intervention, Affiliated Mental Health Center (ECNU), School of Psychology and Cognitive Science, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200062, China; Shanghai Changning Mental Health Center, Shanghai 200335, China; Institute of Wisdom in China, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200062, China.
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Christensen J, Slavik L, Nicol JJ, Loehr JD. Alpha oscillations related to self-other integration and distinction during live orchestral performance: A naturalistic case study. PSYCHOLOGY OF MUSIC 2023; 51:295-315. [PMID: 36532616 PMCID: PMC9751440 DOI: 10.1177/03057356221091313] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Ensemble music performance requires musicians to achieve precise interpersonal coordination while maintaining autonomous control over their own actions. To do so, musicians dynamically shift between integrating other performers' actions into their own action plans and maintaining a distinction between their own and others' actions. Research in laboratory settings has shown that this dynamic process of self-other integration and distinction is indexed by sensorimotor alpha oscillations. The purpose of the current descriptive case study was to examine oscillations related to self-other integration and distinction in a naturalistic performance context. We measured alpha activity from four violinists during a concert hall performance of a 60-musician orchestra. We selected a musical piece from the orchestra's repertoire and, before analyzing alpha activity, performed a score analysis to divide the piece into sections that were expected to strongly promote self-other integration and distinction. In line with previous laboratory findings, performers showed suppressed and enhanced alpha activity during musical sections that promoted self-other integration and distinction, respectively. The current study thus provides preliminary evidence that findings from carefully controlled laboratory experiments generalize to complex real-world performance. Its findings also suggest directions for future research and potential applications of interest to musicians, music educators, and music therapists.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Lauren Slavik
- Department of Psychology, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada
| | - Jennifer J Nicol
- Department of Educational Psychology and Special Education, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada
| | - Janeen D Loehr
- Department of Psychology, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada
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Goupil L, Saint-Germier P, Rouvier G, Schwarz D, Canonne C. Musical coordination in a large group without plans nor leaders. Sci Rep 2020; 10:20377. [PMID: 33230245 PMCID: PMC7683723 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-77263-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2020] [Accepted: 11/09/2020] [Indexed: 11/03/2022] Open
Abstract
A widespread belief is that large groups engaged in joint actions that require a high level of flexibility are unable to coordinate without the introduction of additional resources such as shared plans or hierarchical organizations. Here, we put this belief to a test, by empirically investigating coordination within a large group of 16 musicians performing collective free improvisation-a genre in which improvisers aim at creating music that is as complex and unprecedented as possible without relying on shared plans or on an external conductor. We show that musicians freely improvising within a large ensemble can achieve significant levels of coordination, both at the level of their musical actions (i.e., their individual decisions to play or to stop playing) and at the level of their directional intentions (i.e., their intentions to change or to support the music produced by the group). Taken together, these results invite us to reconsider the range and scope of actions achievable by large groups, and to explore alternative organizational models that emphasize decentralized and unscripted forms of collective behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Louise Goupil
- STMS UMR 9912 (CNRS/IRCAM/SU), Paris, France
- University of East London, London, UK
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