Bodies in Sync

I ran across this article that tied well into the lecture in class today on facial expressions. Here is the link/address: http://www.naturalhistorymag.com/features/251555/sept

Adapted from the author's book, The Age of Empathy: Nature's Lessons for a Kinder Society, this article addresses the prevalence of a common/universal behavior see across species that the author calls "Empathetic Synchronization of bodies". She goes on to give the following examples of empathetic synchronization : "moving when others move, laughing when others laugh, crying when others cry, yawning when others yawn". This trait of imitating behavior/emotions has been witnessed in monkeys, dogs, and even fish.

It is important to note that the author focuses more on the innate or primitive aspects of empathy and sympathy and not on what we consciously reconstruct or refer to as "imagination of walking in someone else's shoes". For example, a study conducted by Ulf Dimberg from Uppsala University in Sweden measured the facial reactions of subjects to brief flashing pictures of angry or happy facial expressions. It was found that even if the pictures were flashed too quickly for conscious perception, humans still frowned in reaction to angry faces and smiled to happy ones.

As for the causes or importance of this trait, there are many evolutionary factors that could favor this type of group behavior. Offspring of "warm" or "empathetic" mothers would obviously be at an advantage compared to neglected or ignored offspring. And a bird that doesn't automatically respond to an alarm call is at risk. A neurological mechanism involves cells called mirror neurons that actively respond specifically to actions being made by another individual.



(Picture: A computer animation of a chimpanzee yawning. Chimpanzees that view this animation start to yawn in response)

Although we may never know exactly why we yawn or start to when witnessing someone else yawning, it is safe to assume we are all interconnected in what we do.

Posted by Alliam Ortiz

Edit: Most of the comments asked for an explanation to why there is synchronization in our behavior. It is safe to bet that this holds an evolutionary purpose, because such behavior would become extinct if not beneficial and increase fitness. The article did mention that this behavior is most often seen in species that live in groups and interact regularly with each other. Perhaps this synchronization can be analogous to a muscular reflex in that it often needs very little to prompt it and not much processing. I suggest for those of you that are interested in this topic to research mirror neurons. They may hold the key to how and why behavior is synchronized.