Abstract
Group dancing is a ubiquitous human activity that involves exertive synchronized movement to music. It is hypothesized to play a role in social bonding, potentially via the release of endorphins, which are analgesic and reward-inducing, and have been implicated in primate social bonding. We used a 2 × 2 experimental design to examine effects of exertion and synchrony on bonding. Both demonstrated significant independent positive effects on pain threshold (a proxy for endorphin activation) and in-group bonding. This suggests that dance which involves both exertive and synchronized movement may be an effective group bonding activity.
Highlights
All human cultures perform and enjoy forms of music and dance in a group setting [1]
This study aimed to elucidate the roles of synchrony and exertion on perceived social bonding and pain threshold following a naturalistic group dancing activity
Results demonstrate that both synchronization and exertion have positive independent effects on self-reported social bonding and pain threshold
Summary
All human cultures perform and enjoy forms of music and dance in a group setting [1]. Dancing involves people synchronizing their movements to a predictable, rhythmic beat (usually provided by music) and to each other In this manner, dance is fundamentally cooperative in nature, and may have served the evolutionary function of encouraging social bonds, cooperation and prosocial behaviours between group members [2,3,4,5]. Synchronized rocking in a chair [9], walking in step [10] and performing simple body movements in time with others and a metronome [5] encourage prosocial tendencies These effects are argued to be owing to a blurring of the perception of ‘self’ and ‘other’ leading to a bond between actors [11]
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