Kiwi Diwali: a longitudinal investigation of perceived social connection following a civic religious ritual
Religion, Brain & Behavior
To be in synchrony or not? A meta-analysis of synchrony's effects on behavior, perception, cognition and affect
A B S T R A C T We meta-analytically investigated the strength of synchrony on four dimensions of... more A B S T R A C T We meta-analytically investigated the strength of synchrony on four dimensions of response: (1) prosocial behavior, (2) perceived social bonding, (2) social cognition, and (3) positive affect. A total of 42 independent studies (N = 4327) were analyzed in which experimentally manipulated synchronous actions were compared to control conditions in healthy non-clinical samples. Our random effects model indicated that synchronous actions affected all four dimensions of response. Synchrony had a medium-sized positive effect on prosocial behaviors, a small-to-medium-sized positive effect on both perceived social bonding and social cognition, and a small-sized positive effect on positive affect. Notably, synchrony in larger groups increased prosocial behavior and positive affect, but group size did not moderate the relationship between synchrony and perceived social bonding and social cognition. This pattern suggests that distinct process mechanisms (neurocognitive versus af...
We aimed to examine the link between two types of joint action (synchrony and asynchrony) and cre... more We aimed to examine the link between two types of joint action (synchrony and asynchrony) and creativity (both divergent thinking and convergent thinking) using an established experimental paradigm. A secondary aim was to replicate and extend the amplified positive effects of shared intentionality (i.e., having a shared common goal) on social and affective responses. Participants (N = 138) were randomly assigned to move in synchrony, move in asynchrony, or passively observe others moving. To induce shared goals, participants were provided with either a shared group goal of working together or an individual goal of focusing on the individual participant's own movements. First, our results revealed that joint action in combination with group goal conditions decreases convergent thinking, but we found no support for differences in divergent thinking. This indicates that it may be the underlying shared goals combined with joint action that influences convergent thinking, and not synchronized movements. Second, we replicated synchrony's positive effect on cohesion and positive affect. These findings are consistent with evolutionary theories of group rituals as a means for inducing solidarity, and extend previous findings by showing that joint action with shared goals may potentially induce shared patterns of thought.
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Papers by Reneeta Mogan