Version 1
: Received: 19 March 2022 / Approved: 23 March 2022 / Online: 23 March 2022 (12:36:52 CET)
Version 2
: Received: 13 September 2022 / Approved: 13 September 2022 / Online: 13 September 2022 (15:59:57 CEST)
How to cite:
Olarewaju, E. The Collective Mind: An Experimental Analysis of Imitation and Self‑organization in Humans. Preprints2022, 2022030316. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202203.0316.v1
Olarewaju, E. The Collective Mind: An Experimental Analysis of Imitation and Self‑organization in Humans. Preprints 2022, 2022030316. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202203.0316.v1
Olarewaju, E. The Collective Mind: An Experimental Analysis of Imitation and Self‑organization in Humans. Preprints2022, 2022030316. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202203.0316.v1
APA Style
Olarewaju, E. (2022). The Collective Mind: An Experimental Analysis of Imitation and Self‑organization in Humans. Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202203.0316.v1
Chicago/Turabian Style
Olarewaju, E. 2022 "The Collective Mind: An Experimental Analysis of Imitation and Self‑organization in Humans" Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202203.0316.v1
Abstract
I present an experimental paradigm to explore the interpersonal dynamics generating a collective mind. I hypothesized that collective organization is based on dual interpersonal modes: (1) symmetrical and (2) anti‑symmetrical. I specified the geometric topology of these modes by detecting the spatiotemporal patterns that embed cooperative agents in a three‑dimensional matrix. I found that the symmetrical mode is executed automatically and without guidance. Conversely, the anti‑symmetrical mode required explicit direction and recruited attention for execution. I demonstrate that self‑other mirror‑symmetry stabilized group dynamics, enabled fast and efficient symmetrical imitation that optimized information transmission, whereas anti‑symmetrical imitation was comparatively slow, inefficient, and unstable. I determined that the anti‑symmetrical mode spontaneously transitioned to the symmetrical mode under perturbations. Crucially, this renormalization mechanism never transitioned from symmetrical to anti‑symmetrical. These self-organizing dynamics speak to interpersonal symmetry‑breaking. In the present work, spontaneous group choice mandated that agents synchronize cooperative cycles in symmetrical space under internal or external perturbations. I provide examples to illustrate that this self-regulating pullback attractor manifests in invertebrates and vertebrates alike. I conclude by suggesting that inter‑agent symmetry provides the social stability manifold through which attention-driven interactions enable intrapersonal and interpersonal change.
Keywords
1; Social interaction 2; Self-organization 3; Imitation 4; Coordination dynamics 5; Group nor-malization 6; Interpersonal symmetry
Subject
Social Sciences, Cognitive Science
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
