The role of interpersonal movement synchronisation in empathic functions: Insights from Tango Argentino and Capoeira

Although evidence points to a role for kinesthetic empathy (i.e. spontaneous interpersonal movement imitation and synchronisation) in social interaction, its relationship with emotional and cognitive aspects of empathy is unknown. We compared empathy in Tango and Capoeira experts, which crucially depend on ongoing, mutual interpersonal synchronisation, with empathy in practitioners of Salsa and Breakdance, respectively, which demand less interpersonal synchronisation but are comparable concerning movements and setting. Kinesthetic empathy was increased in the Tango and Capoeira groups. Although no group differences in other aspects of empathy were detected, kinesthetic empathy correlated with emotional and cognitive empathy. Taken together, trait kinesthetic empathy varies in the general population, and appears increased in synchronisation experts.     

New ideas for brain modelling 3

This paper considers a process for the creation and subsequent firing of sequences of neuronal patterns, as might be found in the human brain. The scale is one of larger patterns emerging from an ensemble mass, possibly through some type of energy equation and a reduction procedure. The links between the patterns can be formed naturally, as a residual effect of the pattern creation itself. This paper follows-on closely from the earlier research, including two earlier papers in the series and uses the ideas of entropy and cohesion. With a small addition, it is possible to show how the inter-pattern links can be determined. A compact Grid form of an earlier Counting Mechanism is also demonstrated and may be a new clustering technique. It is possible to explain how a very basic repeating structure can form the arbitrary patterns and activation sequences between them, and a key question of how nodes synchronise may even be answerable.