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Peer-reviewedCC BY-NC 4.0Psychophysiology

Interpersonal Cardiac Synchrony During Emotional Sharing Between Strangers

  • Lena Adel1,2,3,4
  • Viktoriya Manova5,6
  • Tayla Bain6
  • Dhanishta Ambwani6
  • Guillaume Dumas4,7,8
  • Bassam Khoury5,6
  • Michael Lifshitz2,3
8 affiliations
  1. 1Integrated Program in Neuroscience McGill University Montreal Canada
  2. 2Lady Davis Institute for Medical Research Jewish General Hospital Montreal Canada
  3. 3Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry McGill University Montreal Canada
  4. 4Centre de Recherche Azrieli CHU Sainte Justine Montreal Canada
  5. 5Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology McGill University Montreal Canada
  6. 6McGill Mindfulness Research Lab McGill University Montreal Canada
  7. 7Department of Psychiatry Université de Montréal Montreal Canada
  8. 8Mila – Quebec AI Institute Montréal Quebec Canada
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Abstract

Interpersonal physiological synchrony is well documented in close relationships, where it supports social bonding and emotion regulation; however, little is known about whether cardiac synchrony emerges during emotional interactions between strangers. Here we examined interpersonal cardiac synchrony in pairs of strangers during an emotional sharing task. Eighty participants (40 dyads) engaged in 15 min of emotional sharing, during which one participant recounted a negative personal experience while the other provided support. We assessed cardiac synchrony as the cross‐correlation of residualized inter‐beat interval (IBI) time series from synchronized electrocardiogram (ECG) recordings. Results showed that greater mutual liking, gender match, and shared emotional perception were linked to stronger cardiac synchrony, suggesting that interpersonal synchrony reflects social and emotional alignment even between strangers. Additionally, the similarity between the heart rate variability (HRV) of each interaction partner predicted greater synchrony, indicating that physiological compatibility may facilitate alignment. We also examined whether a brief mindfulness induction given to the support provider enhanced synchrony and interaction quality. However, the mindfulness induction had no significant effect, suggesting that a brief self‐regulation practice may not influence physiological alignment in first‐time interactions. These findings extend research on interpersonal cardiac synchrony beyond established relationships, identifying key factors that shape physiological alignment during emotional sharing in first‐time interactions.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{adel2026interpersonal,
  title = {{Interpersonal Cardiac Synchrony During Emotional Sharing Between Strangers}},
  author = {Lena Adel and Viktoriya Manova and Tayla Bain and Dhanishta Ambwani and Guillaume Dumas and Bassam Khoury and Michael Lifshitz},
  journal = {Psychophysiology},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.1111/psyp.70431},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1111/psyp.70431},
  note = {CC BY-NC 4.0},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Interpersonal Cardiac Synchrony During Emotional Sharing Between Strangers
AU  - Lena Adel
AU  - Viktoriya Manova
AU  - Tayla Bain
AU  - Dhanishta Ambwani
AU  - Guillaume Dumas
AU  - Bassam Khoury
AU  - Michael Lifshitz
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/27
JO  - Psychophysiology
DO  - 10.1111/psyp.70431
UR  - https://doi.org/10.1111/psyp.70431
AB  - Interpersonal physiological synchrony is well documented in close relationships, where it supports social bonding and emotion regulation; however, little is known about whether cardiac synchrony emerges during emotional interactions between strangers. Here we examined interpersonal cardiac synchrony in pairs of strangers during an emotional sharing task. Eighty participants (40 dyads) engaged in 15 min of emotional sharing, during which one participant recounted a negative personal experience while the other provided support. We assessed cardiac synchrony as the cross‐correlation of residualized inter‐beat interval (IBI) time series from synchronized electrocardiogram (ECG) recordings. Results showed that greater mutual liking, gender match, and shared emotional perception were linked to stronger cardiac synchrony, suggesting that interpersonal synchrony reflects social and emotional alignment even between strangers. Additionally, the similarity between the heart rate variability (HRV) of each interaction partner predicted greater synchrony, indicating that physiological compatibility may facilitate alignment. We also examined whether a brief mindfulness induction given to the support provider enhanced synchrony and interaction quality. However, the mindfulness induction had no significant effect, suggesting that a brief self‐regulation practice may not influence physiological alignment in first‐time interactions. These findings extend research on interpersonal cardiac synchrony beyond established relationships, identifying key factors that shape physiological alignment during emotional sharing in first‐time interactions.
SN  - 0048-5772
SN  - 1469-8986
ER  -