Interpersonal neural synchronization and behavioral outcomes: A systematic review and meta-analysis of fNIRS hyperscanning studies
Year: 2026
Type: review
Abstract: This is a preregistration for a systematic review and meta-analysis of functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) hyperscanning studies. Purpose: to quantify the overall association between interpersonal neural synchronization (INS) and behavioral outcomes, and — as the core methodological contribution — to test whether this association remains significant and how much it attenuates when restricting to studies that controlled for physiological confounds (short-separation channels, pseudo-pair analyses, or systemic physiological regression). This addresses the central unresolved debate in the field: whether inter-brain synchrony reflects genuine interpersonal coupling or shared stimulation and physiological artifacts (Burgess, 2013; Hamilton, 2021; Hamilton and Konvalinka, 2026). Expected outcomes: (1) an overall INS-behavior association estimate (Fisher's z / r) from three-level random-effects models with robust variance estimation; (2) a moderator analysis with physiological confound control as the primary moderator, plus task type, outcome type, synchronization metric, and brain region; (3) publication-bias assessment (funnel plot, Egger's test, trim-and-fill). We expect to include approximately 30-50 task-based studies; if fewer than 10 studies with extractable effect sizes are available, the analysis will be downgraded to a narrative systematic review.
Source: Open Science Framework
Authors: JIE MA, Yu Haibo, Xuwang Miao, Xinyi Qu
Language: English
Subfield: Social Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7224998311