How does synchronous behavior appear under time pressure during dyadic collaboration?

Abstract

Collaboration is a fundamental aspect of human social interaction, characterized by synchronous behaviors such as physical proximity like hand positioning, and eye movements like gaze. While prior research has focused on these behaviors separately, few studies have integrated them within a single experimental framework. Most cooperative tasks are traditionally conducted without time constraints, yet time remains a crucial variable in real-world collaboration. This study examines whether individuals synchronize their behaviors to improve cooperative task performance, how they adjust physical proximity and eye movement patterns to achieve this synchronization, and whether time pressure alters these synchronized behaviors. Experimental results indicate that dyads did not significantly adjust their hand positions or gaze points to improve cooperation, suggesting that physical proximity may not be essential for enhancing performance in cooperative tasks. Moreover, time pressure minimally alters behavioral dynamics during cooperation, suggesting its limited impact as an environmental factor.