Analysis of group behavior based on sharing heterogeneous roles in a triad using a coordinated drawing task

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Science
• Psychology
• Neuroscience

Background:

• Humans naturally engage in sociality and shared goals.
• Planned coordination requires adjusting actions based on others' roles for optimal performance.
• Mechanisms of complex, non-verbal group coordination in triads are not fully understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate mechanisms of complex, dynamically planned coordination in non-verbal group behavior.
• To quantitatively analyze non-verbal group behavior in a triad with heterogeneous roles.
• To identify the specific contributions of different roles in coordinated tasks.

Main Methods:

• Introduced a coordinated drawing task involving participant triads.
• Roles included pulling, relaxing, and adjusting thread tensions to draw an equilateral triangle.
• Measured pen positions and tensions, using statistical models to analyze data.

Main Results:

• The "adjusting" role was significantly related to faster drawing performance.
• This role moderately intervened in other roles' actions, fine-tuning movement without causing deviation.
• The adjusting role is crucial for maintaining smooth pen movement and overall task success.

Conclusions:

• The "adjusting" role acts as a facilitator in non-verbal coordinated behavior within a triad.
• This role is essential for resilient and efficient group performance.
• Findings contribute to understanding social interactions and coordinated group dynamics.