Breathing patterns of conversation partners

Abstract

Previous research has shown that breathing patterns of conversation partners can become synchronized. For example, when one conversation partner is speaking, the listening partner's breathing patterns more closely resemble speech breathing than tidal breathing (McFarland, 2001). The present study aims to replicate and extend these findings using an unconventional instrumental setup consisting of a single inductive plethysmograph machine shared by both conversation partners. In addition to scripted and unscripted conversational speech, single-subject quiet breathing and speech breathing tasks of increasing length and complexity were also recorded using conventional inductive plethysmography, and used as baseline data for interpretating the conversational speech breathing data.