What is it about thinking and communicating in the same language that can result in completely different understandings and points of view? Have you ever had a conversation with someone and felt as if they were speaking a foreign language? Or have you spoken to someone you have just met and felt like you really connected with them,that you are on the same wavelength? Now science is proving the concept of being on the same wavelength is more than metaphorical.
Communication is that much easier when we respond to the world in a similar way and this can be measured by brain activity, which underlies the phenomenon of clicking: It’s why you and that stranger at a party or a work colleague laugh at the same things, want to chat endlessly about the same topic, and see the logic in the same argument. If two people interpret and respond to the world in similar ways, they’re easily able to predict one another’s thoughts and actions. This increased predictability makes it easier to interact and communicate, which makes conversations and shared experiences more enjoyable. It also makes friendships more likely. [1]
A study on brain-to-brain synchrony, published in Current Biology on April 27, examined the neuroscience of classroom interaction and found that shared attention—spurred by certain stimuli, like eye contact and face-to-face exchange—generated similar brain wave patterns in students. The research, led by psychologist Suzanne Dikker at New York University, indicates engaged groups are literally in sync on a brain-to-brain basis. [2]
According to the research, “Particular types of exchanges seemed to especially influence the meeting of the minds. For example, eye contact was linked to shared intentions, which “sets up a scaffold” for social cognition and more engagement. These individual interactions seemed to lead to a shared sense of purpose across the group—which manifested in specific brainwave patterns, likewise shared across the group. [2] So what does this mean for a common sense of purpose in our increasingly non personal and digitised world?
The definition of a wave is s a disturbance that moves energy from one place to another. Only energy — not matter — is transferred as a wave moves. The Law of Attraction tells us that ‘like energy attracts like energy’, therefore it is important to understand that the frequency of our thoughts and that of the receiver will govern how they are perceived and understood.
With many people being forced to work at home in isolation due to Covid-19, the issue of shared motivation and being on the same wave length with work or social colleagues seems that much more difficult, particularly with the lack of social interaction and the occurrence of different distractions away from the normal routine. Literally, our brains have to adjust to these differing scenarios and find new ways of connecting and communicating.
Modern research has demonstrated that the brain continues to create new neural pathways and alter existing ones in order to adapt to new experiences, learn new information, and create new memories. Brain plasticity, also known as neuroplasticity, is a term that refers to the brain’s ability to change and adapt as a result of experience. By developing new connections and pruning away weak ones, the brain is able to adapt to the changing environment. [3]
In an ever increasingly ‘remote’ world, without physical opportunities to ‘couple’ our brain frequencies, it will be interesting to see what neurological changes might occur as a result. Will it be possible for our brains to find new frequencies that create ‘long distance’ coupling? We are social beings and in seeking new social connections perhaps telepathy, the act of transferring thoughts into someone’s head without language, is not as far away as we might have once imagined.
[1]https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/why_you_click_with_certain_people
[3] https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-brain-plasticity-2794886