A leader–follower relationship in joint action on a discrete force production task

The present study examined the development of a leader–follower relationship in joint action performed by participants with different skill levels. Two participants were instructed to produce discrete isometric forces such that the sum of the forces was the target force. The task did not prescribe the onset time or share of force each participant contributed to the target force. Although novices with low force variability did not produce an earlier force than those with high force variability in the novice–novice group, experienced participants produced an earlier force than novices in the novice-experienced group. While participants with low force variability always produced a stronger force than those with high force variability in both the groups, there was no significant difference in force distributions between participants with low and high force variabilities. Although a novice-experienced pair produced force more complementarily than a novice–novice pair in the first practice block, the difference between pairs vanished after the first practice block, suggesting that leader–follower relations were not always beneficial to task performance. In addition, practice of the joint action did not transfer to individual action.