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Being in the zone: physiological markers of togetherness in joint improvisation

Overview of attention for article published in Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, May 2015
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  • In the top 25% of all research outputs scored by Altmetric
  • High Attention Score compared to outputs of the same age (88th percentile)
  • Good Attention Score compared to outputs of the same age and source (74th percentile)

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1 news outlet
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8 X users
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3 Facebook pages

Citations

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116 Dimensions

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230 Mendeley
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Title
Being in the zone: physiological markers of togetherness in joint improvisation
Published in
Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, May 2015
DOI 10.3389/fnhum.2015.00187
Pubmed ID
Authors

Lior Noy, Nava Levit-Binun, Yulia Golland

Abstract

Performers improvising together describe special moments of 'being in the zone' - periods of high performance, synchrony, and enhanced sense of togetherness. Existing evidence suggests a possible route for attaining togetherness - interpersonal synchrony, the fine-grained sensory-motor coordination that promotes social connectedness. Here, we investigated the physiological characteristics of togetherness using a practice from theater and dance, the mirror game. Pairs of expert improvisers jointly improvised synchronized linear motion, while their motion tracks and cardiovascular activity were continuously monitored. Players also provided dynamic ratings of togetherness while watching video recordings of their games. We identified periods of togetherness using kinematic and subjective markers and assessed their physiological characteristics. The kinematic and the subjective measures of togetherness showed some agreement, with more extensive game periods being marked by the subjective than the kinematic one. Game rounds with high rates of togetherness were characterized by increased players' cardiovascular activity, increased correlation of players' heart rates (HRs), and increased motion intensity. By comparing motion segments with similar motion intensity, we showed that moments of togetherness in the mirror game were marked by increased players' HRs, regardless of motion intensity. This pattern was robust for the subjectively defined periods of togetherness, while showing a marginal effect for the kinematically defined togetherness. Building upon similar findings in flow research we suggest that the observed increase of players' HRs during togetherness periods in the mirror game might indicate the enhanced engagement and enjoyment reported by performers going into 'the zone.' The suggested approach, combining temporal measurements of kinematic, physiological and subjective responses, demonstrates how the dynamics of spontaneously emerging dyadic states can be studied empirically.

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X Demographics

The data shown below were collected from the profiles of 8 X users who shared this research output. Click here to find out more about how the information was compiled.
Mendeley readers

Mendeley readers

The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 230 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.

Geographical breakdown

Country Count As %
France 2 <1%
Japan 1 <1%
Portugal 1 <1%
Netherlands 1 <1%
Unknown 225 98%

Demographic breakdown

Readers by professional status Count As %
Student > Ph. D. Student 51 22%
Student > Master 37 16%
Researcher 35 15%
Student > Bachelor 19 8%
Student > Doctoral Student 12 5%
Other 34 15%
Unknown 42 18%
Readers by discipline Count As %
Psychology 65 28%
Social Sciences 22 10%
Neuroscience 18 8%
Arts and Humanities 12 5%
Computer Science 11 5%
Other 42 18%
Unknown 60 26%
Attention Score in Context

Attention Score in Context

This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 15. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 04 December 2022.
All research outputs
#2,386,432
of 24,938,276 outputs
Outputs from Frontiers in Human Neuroscience
#1,121
of 7,584 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#29,710
of 269,943 outputs
Outputs of similar age from Frontiers in Human Neuroscience
#49
of 186 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 24,938,276 research outputs across all sources so far. Compared to these this one has done particularly well and is in the 90th percentile: it's in the top 10% of all research outputs ever tracked by Altmetric.
So far Altmetric has tracked 7,584 research outputs from this source. They typically receive a lot more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 14.9. This one has done well, scoring higher than 85% of its peers.
Older research outputs will score higher simply because they've had more time to accumulate mentions. To account for age we can compare this Altmetric Attention Score to the 269,943 tracked outputs that were published within six weeks on either side of this one in any source. This one has done well, scoring higher than 88% of its contemporaries.
We're also able to compare this research output to 186 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one has gotten more attention than average, scoring higher than 74% of its contemporaries.