Humans have a striking ability to coordinate their actions with each other to achieve joint goals. The tight interpersonal coordination that characterizes joint actions is achieved through processes that help with preparing for joint action as well as processes that are active while joint actions are being performed. To prepare for joint action, partners form representations of each other’s actions and tasks and the relation between them. This enables them to predict each other’s upcoming actions, which, in turn, facilitates coordination. While performing joint actions, partners’ coordination is maintained by (a) monitoring whether individual and joint outcomes correspond to what was planned, (b) predicting partners’ action parameters on the basis of familiarity with their individual actions, (c) communicating task-relevant information unknown to partners in an action-based fashion, and (d) relying on coupling of predictions through dense perceptual-information flow between coactors. The next challenge for the field of joint action is to generate an integrated perspective that links coordination mechanisms to normative, evolutionary, and communicative frameworks.

人类具有惊人的协调彼此行动以实现共同目标的能力。表征共同行动的紧密人际协调是通过有助于准备共同行动的过程以及执行共同行动时活跃的过程来实现的。为了准备采取联合行动，合作伙伴形成彼此的行动和任务及其之间的关系的代表。这使他们能够预测彼此即将采取的行动，从而促进协调。在执行联合行动时，通过（a）监视个人和联合结果是否与计划的结果相符，（b）在熟悉其个人行动的基础上预测合作伙伴的行动参数，来维持合作伙伴的协调，（c）以基于动作的方式传达合作伙伴未知的与任务相关的信息，以及（d）依靠合作者之间密集的知觉信息流进行预测耦合。联合行动领域的下一个挑战是要产生一个将协调机制与规范性，演进性和交流性框架联系起来的综合观点。