Graduation Year
2025
Document Type
Thesis
Degree
M.A.
Degree Name
Master of Arts (M.A.)
Degree Granting Department
Psychology
Major Professor
Michael Gillespie, Ph.D.
Co-Major Professor
Daniel Griffin, Ph.D.
Committee Member
Ruthann Atchley, Ph.D.
Keywords
Affect Contagion, Coordination, Emergen*, Physiological Synchrony, Team Physiological Dynamics, Teams
Abstract
Team processes are severely understudied, likely given their dynamic nature. Physiological synchrony (PS) may provide a solution, as PS provides a proximal, objective measure of team processes. PS is believed to develop through affect contagion, such that team members who catch each other’s emotions are more likely to physiologically synchronize. Extant research has found relationships between PS and performance; however, many questions remain regarding the nature, scope, and directionality of this relationship. I proposed that PS in the context of a positively valenced emotion would be beneficial to team performance, while PS characterized by a negatively valenced emotion would be detrimental.Longitudinal data were collected from 151 dyadic teams across three tasks in a bomb defusal simulation. Two types of PS – concurrent synchrony (CS) and max lagged synchrony (MLS) – were calculated using inter-beat interval data. Positive valence predicted CS, but not MLS, suggesting that while affect contagion indeed acts as a mechanism for the development of CS, different mechanisms may explain how MLS develops. Performance did not predict synchrony, but both CS and MLS predicted performance. Specifically, teams with higher CS were less likely to succeed and more likely to commit errors. Lastly, a significant interaction was found such that MLS in the context of a positively valenced state was beneficial for team success, indicating the importance of context when interpreting MLS. Practically, this research demonstrates the potential for PS as an efficient, predictive index of team performance that may unveil ideal timing for just-in-time interventions to meaningfully change the trajectory of team performance in high-stakes environments.
Scholar Commons Citation
Deal, Caroline N., "The Dark Side of Synchrony: Investigating Affective Valence as a Moderator of the Relationship between Physiological Synchrony and Team Performance" (2025). USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/etd/11048
