Temporal predictability promotes prosocial behavior in 5-year-old children

Although interpersonal coordinative activities have been shown to produce prosocial effects in both adults and children, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. While most approaches focus on the effect of mimicry and synchronous behavioral matching, we hypothesize that temporal predictability might play a central role in producing prosocial effects, as it directs coordination and might therefore strengthen shared intentionality. In a percussion task with pairs of 5-year old children, we manipulated temporal predictability and movement similarity/predictability between the pair’s movements. Temporal predictability was manipulated by instructing the pair to play the instruments either to beats that were evenly-spaced, and therefore predictable, or to beats that were random, and therefore unpredictable. Movement similarity/predictability was manipulated by having the pair play rhythmic patterns that were similar, predictable, or independent from each other. Children who played to predictable beats were more willing to solve problems cooperatively with their partners and to help when their partners had an accident. In contrast, there was no positive effect of rhythmic predictability or similarity. These results are the first to show that temporal predictability affects prosociality independent of movement similarity or predictability. We conclude that the predictable time frame commonly seen in coordinative activities may be key to strengthening shared intentionality and producing prosocial effects.