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I'd klingon her 
| quote: | Originally posted by Theresa
Journal of Applied Psychology
Issue: Volume 94(1), January 2009, p 216–223
Copyright: © 2009 by the American Psychological Association
Publication Type: [Research Reports]
DOI: 10.1037/a0012829
Behavioral mirroring is a specific type of nonverbal interpersonal dynamic where people unknowingly adjust the timing and content of the physical movements in a manner that mirrors the behaviors exhibited by their interaction partner (Chartrand & Bargh, 1999; La France, 1982). For example, when a colleague leans forward and places her hands on a table in a manner that unintentionally reflects the posture and hand movements of her interaction partner, she is engaging in behavioral mirroring. As a nonconscious interpersonal dynamic, behavioral mirroring is distinct from more conscious and deliberate forms of mimicry, for example, when a salesperson strategically mirrors a potential customer to influence a sale.
Individuals often use behavioral mirroring to infer rapport and empathy in their social interactions (Lakin, Jefferis, Cheng, & Chartrand, 2003; Tickle-Degnen & Rosenthal, 1987). A high level of behavioral mirroring generally is experienced as a reassuring signal that the encounter is proceeding well; a low level is experienced negatively, interpreted as a lack of rapport or rejection. Thus, people feel more comfortable and perceive their interactions more positively when they are subtly mirrored by an interaction partner than when they are not (Chartrand & Bargh, 1999).
For behavioral mirroring effects to occur, however, a person must notice and process the nonverbal signals that an interaction partner exhibits (Sanchez-Burks, 2002). Thus, to be influenced by the degree of behavioral mirroring in a face-to-face interaction requires a certain level of sensitivity to interpersonal cues. Yet, there is growing evidence that people's sensitivity to such cues often varies across cultural groups and social contexts (for a review, see Earley, 1997). This observation raises the question of how cultural group membership might moderate the effect of behavioral mirroring on an individual's experience of and performance in an intercultural workplace interaction. In this article, we explore how this interactive relationship between culture and mirroring might operate among two cultural groups known to differ in their sensitivity to interpersonal cues in work settings: U.S. Latinos and U.S. Anglos.
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It isn't a dismissed theory by any means, but it also isn't a theory of any particular focus, or at least not in the psychology courses I have taken thus far.
When I search my Psychology database, a lot of results pop up, so it appears to be a heavily discussed/researched theory. |
Oh, thanks! Sorry I missed your post earlier, I'm easily distracted by... well, never mind 
So I guess this is indeed something well documented after all. But, the funny thing is: how do you know you're being mirrored rather than mirroring if it is an unconscious process? A-ha!
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