Project Leader
Ayako Morisaki, Assistant Professor, Kokoro Research Center, Kyoto University

Collaborative Research Affiliates
Toshihiro Kato, Associate Professor, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University

Collaborators from the Kokoro Research Center
Sakiko Yoshikawa, Ph.D., Professor, Kokoro Research Center, Kyoto University
Chika Nagaoka, Researcher, Kokoro Research Center, Kyoto University
Yoshiyuki Ueda, Researcher, Kokoro Research Center, Kyoto University

This research will examine changes that take place in the process of deepening trust, bonds, and increasing mutual understanding from the perspective of non-verbal communication. Attachment to caregivers in early stages of child development is critical to the development of children's sociability. Specific emotional relationships with others lead to psychological stability and are linked to later autonomy and mental and physical development. The early development of attachment starts within two to three months of birth. At this time, infants smile in response to smiling by caregivers, move and vocalize in response to movement and speech, synchronizing the body movements of both individuals and forming a sense of emotional unity. This synchronization of body movement also occurs naturally in adults engaged in intimate discussion, and even in social animals other than humans.

The research will examine changes in non-verbal communications during the process of building trust between paired individuals, with a focus on synchronized behavior, and compare humans with other animals to investigate the primary nature of feelings of trust. Such knowledge may be applied to support developmentally-disabled children who have difficulty engaging in natural communications with others.