A Picture’s Worth: Partner Photographs Reduce Experimentally Induced Pain
In a study completed by Sarah L. Master from the University of California Los Angeles, she attempted an experiment that found a causal relationship between the intensity of pain the participant receives and their exposure to loved ones such as significant others for example. The study found that an individual’s exposure to loved ones helps the individual improve his or her tolerance of pain. The experimenters tested this by having twenty five females right-handed females hold their right hand through a curtain holding different items such as her boyfriend’s hand, a stranger’s hand, and an object. The females also looked at pictures of her boyfriend, a stranger, an object, and a crosshair. Half the females completed the hand holding task first then the picture task, and the other half completed the picture task and then the hand holding. During each level of the picture and hand holding tasks, a male experimenter behind a curtain gave the particpant three six second stimulations on three parts of the participant’s left arm followed by a twenty second rest period, and the participants experienced the same levels of the picture and hand holding tasks twice. After the participant experienced pain, she would point to a number on…show more content… Seeing pictures of other people close to you such as friends and family can have a greater or lesser impact on how one feels pain. The reason why the participant felt less pain during the stimulation could be primarily due to the participant’s physical attraction towards her partner. To figure out how the bond impacts the test, we need to test how seeing pictures of close friends or family affects pain. Also, using the pictures for both the relationship and non-relationship group can determine how having or lacking a relationship affects one’s tolerance for
