Synchronization of movement is defined as similar movements between two or more people who are temporally aligned.[2] This is different to mimicry, as these movements occur after a short delay.[3] Muscular bonding is the idea that moving in time evokes particular emotions.[4] This sparked some of the first research into movement synchronization and its effects on human emotion.
In groups, synchronization of movement has been shown to increase conformity,[5] cooperation and trust.[6][failed verification] Military step has long been used for these purposes but more research on group synchronization is needed to determine its effects on the group as a whole and on individuals within a group. In dyads, groups of two people, synchronization has been demonstrated to increase affiliation,[7] self-esteem,[8] compassion and altruistic behaviour[9] and increase rapport.[10] During arguments, synchrony between the arguing pair has been noted to decrease, however it is not clear whether this is due to the change in emotion or other factors.[11] There is evidence to show that movement synchronization requires other people to cause its beneficial effects, as the effect on affiliation does not occur when one of the dyad is synchronizing their movements to something outside the dyad.In groups, synchronization of movement has been shown to increase conformity,[5] cooperation and trust.[6][failed verification] Military step has long been used for these purposes but more research on group synchronization is needed to determine its effects on the group as a whole and on individuals within a group. In dyads, groups of two people, synchronization has been demonstrated to increase affiliation,[7] self-esteem,[8] compassion and altruistic behaviour[9] and increase rapport.[10] During arguments, synchrony between the arguing pair has been noted to decrease, however it is not clear whether this is due to the change in emotion or other factors.[11] There is evidence to show that movement synchronization requires other people to cause its beneficial effects, as the effect on affiliation does not occur when one of the dyad is synchronizing their movements to something outside the dyad.[7] This is known as interpersonal synchrony.
There has been dispute regarding the true effect of synchrony in these studies. Research in this area detailing the positive effects of synchrony, have attributed this to synchrony alone; however, many of the experiments incorporate a shared intention to achieve synchrony. Indeed, the Reinforcement of Cooperation Model suggests that perception of synchrony leads to reinforcement that cooperation is occurring, which leads to the pro-social effects of synchrony.[12] More research is required to separate the effect of intentionality from the beneficial effect of synchrony.[13]
Some systems may be only approximately synchronized, or plesiochronous. Some applications require that relative offsets between events be determined. For others, only the order of the event is important.[citation needed]