About this session

Thursday, 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM

Bio-behavioral synchrony across contexts: Within-dyad analysis and methodological considerations

Biobehavioral synchrony, characterized by the temporal coordination of behavior and neurobiological activity between dyad members, is critical for children’s development. Previous research has found that biobehavioral synchrony may predict positive developmental outcomes such as self-regulation and school adjustment. Measuring synchrony at the affective, behavioral, and neurobiological levels may reveal mechanisms by which dyadic patterns may promote such outcomes. However, it is unknown whether biobehavioral synchrony processes are similar across contexts (e.g., in stressful or challenging contexts) and the extent to which parents or children drive synchrony. Further, questions persist regarding the analytic and methodological approaches to best capture synchrony within dyads. This symposium highlights findings on parent-child affective and physiological synchrony during challenge contexts and addresses methodological considerations in biobehavioral synchrony.

In this symposium, paper one examines parent-child respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) synchrony across real-time dyadic positive, negative, or neutral affective synchrony during challenging mother-child and father-child interactions, using a multilevel approach. The second paper evaluates three types of physiological synchrony (trend, concurrent, and time-lagged) in mother-child dyads during a performance challenge task. This study uses longitudinal actor-partner interdependence models to determine whether parents or children drive heart rate synchrony in this context. The third paper introduces a novel approach for simulating physiological synchrony data, enabling direct comparison of analytical decisions in modeling physiological synchrony. Finally, the fourth paper presents a meta-analysis of biobehavioral synchrony and cognitive development. This international symposium presents research that advances our understanding of biobehavioral synchrony, addressing contextual variations, analytical considerations, and synthesizing extant findings.

Paper #1
Title	Dynamic Mother-Child and Father-Child RSA Synchrony Vary by Real-Time Positive, Negative, and Neutral Affective Synchrony
Presenting author	Dr. Longfeng Li, Ph.D., Florida State University

Paper #2
Title	When and How Does Mother-Child Physiological Synchrony Occur During a Performance Challenge?
Presenting author	Jennifer Anne Somers, Ph.D., Auburn University, United States

Paper #3
Title	Into the Multiverse of Physiological Synchrony - Investigating Analytical Flexibility with a Novel Simulation Approach
Presenting author	Markus R. Tünte, University of Vienna, Austria

Paper #4
Title	In-sync we learn: A meta-analysis of biobehavioral synchrony’s effects on child cognition
Presenting author	Anna Parenteau, University of California Davis, United States

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Session chair
Anna Parenteau, University of California - Davis, United States

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