A Multimethod Assessment of Spontaneous Behavioral Synchrony in Race- and Age-Concordant Versus Discordant Dyads

Abstract

This work examines the impact of race and age concordance on behavioral synchrony and self-reported rapport in social interactions, employing a multimethod approach across three studies (N_total = 450) and a mini meta-analysis. Behavioral synchrony was assessed with reliable human coders and OpenPose, and rapport was measured through self-reports. Results indicated that race- and age-concordant dyads exhibited significantly greater behavioral synchrony than discordant dyads, suggesting that shared visible social identities may be associated with smoother, more connected interactions. Synchrony effects were stronger when measured by human coders compared to OpenPose, potentially reflecting human coders’ biases related to perceived similarity between interactants or coders’ more nuanced ability to detect certain components of synchrony compared to technological approaches. No significant effects of race or age concordance on self-reported rapport were observed. These findings highlight an important factor in predicting the spontaneous emergence of behavioral synchrony and emphasize the value of integrating multimethod approaches.

Keywords

behavioral synchrony race age rapport nonverbal behavior

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