Why do we fall into sync with others? Interpersonal synchronization and the brain's optimization principle.

Spontaneous interpersonal synchronization of rhythmic behavior such as gait or hand clapping is a ubiquitous phenomenon in human interactions, and is potentially important for social relationships and action understanding. Although several authors have suggested a role of the mirror neuron system in interpersonal coupling, the underlying brain mechanisms are not well understood. Here we argue that more general theories of neural computations, namely predictive coding and the Free Energy Principle, could explain interpersonal coordination dynamics.

Word and deed: a computational model of instruction following.

Instructions are an inextricable, yet poorly understood aspect of modern human life. In this paper we propose that instruction implementation and following can be understood as fast Hebbian learning in prefrontal cortex, which trains slower pathways (e.g.