What makes Cupid’s arrow hit the right target?

What makes people fall in love? Surely the way people act and look are involved. Romantic bonding is a central feature of human life and is connected to well-being, physical health, mental health, happiness, life satisfaction, development, and sexual desire. Yet, the neural and behavioral mechanisms that determine why we are attracted to selected individuals, and not others, are still unknown.

The mechanisms of romantic bonding in humans are largely unknown, but now, Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HU) researchers have found that alignment of physiological responses between individuals – heart rate, respiration, and skin conductance – are also very influential in whether Cupid’s arrow has hit the spot. 

When two people are physiologically in sync, their bodily functions align in a way that is measurable and often occurs naturally during interactions. The findings show that some people are “super synchronizers” who naturally synchronize well in social and nonsocial contexts and thus are perceived as more romantically appealing. This paves the way for further research into how physiological and behavioral synchrony can broadly shape human relationships, said Dr. Shir Atzil and her team from HU’s psychology department. 

The role of synchrony in romantic attraction 

This research aimed at answering two key open questions about the role of synchrony in romantic attraction. First, does synchrony have a role in eliciting attraction? Alternatively, synchrony can result from an increased attraction that raises the motivation to synchronize. Such interactions can also be bi-directional. Second, are there individual differences in the ability to synchronize that determine attractiveness? 

The research integrated both experimental and observational methods to find out how physiological synchrony influences romantic appeal. An online experiment involving 144 participants showed that inducing synchrony between actors significantly boosted their attractiveness ratings. The study has just appeared in the journal Communications Psychology under the title “Social and nonsocial synchrony are interrelated and romantically attractive.” 

Further investigations in a lab-based speed-dating scenario with 48 participants identified “super synchronizers” who were consistently rated as more romantically appealing, underscoring the potential of physiological alignment to significantly enhance perceived attractiveness.

“Our findings suggest that the ability to synchronize with others might not just be a social skill but could stem from more fundamental sensori-motor abilities that require an individual to adapt themselves to dynamic inputs,” said Atzil. This adaptability, whether in response to social cues or rhythmic patterns, is perceived as attractive, potentially because of the beneficial physiological consequences a synchronous partner can have."

The study proposes that synchronized physiological states can improve regulation across various bodily systems, making these interactions more fulfilling. Additionally, effective synchrony may indicate cognitive and evolutionary advantages, suggesting a deeper biological importance of this trait.

The team concluded that their study “not only advances our understanding of romantic attraction but also paves the way for further exploration into how physiological and behavioral synchrony can shape human relationships in broader contexts.”

Despite these promising insights, Atzil concedes the limitations of the research. “The cross-sectional design of our study limits our ability to draw definitive conclusions about the long-term stability of synchrony as a trait and its causal relationship with romantic attraction. Future research will delve into these dynamics more deeply, especially considering the implications of synchrony in sustained romantic relationships and across different sexual orientations.”