Increased Pain Communication following Multiple Group Memberships Salience Leads to a Relative Reduction in Pain-Related Brain Activity

Abstract

Pain is a fundamental human experience that triggers a range of social and psychological responses. In this study, we present behavioral and fMRI data to examine the effect of multiple group memberships salience on reported and neural indices of pain. We found that participants expressed higher levels of pain when more social group memberships were salient. This is consistent with the notion that pain itself motivates people to communicate their pain, and more so when multiple psychological resources are salient. In addition, fMRI results reveal an interesting twist: when participants increased their pain reporting as group memberships increased (from one group to four), there was a corresponding relative reduction in dorsal anterior cingulate cortex and anterior insula activation. These results provide evidence for an adaptive response to pain: the more people make use of the social resources at their disposal when experiencing pain, the less pain areas are activated.

When acute adversity improves psychological health: A social–contextual framework.

“…This implies the capacity to enlist social resources is a coping capacity unto itself. In line with this possibility, one recent study found that as we become aware of supportive resources, such as group membership, our willingness to report distressing experiences (i.e., pain) increases at the same time that our subjective experience of it decreases (Ferris, Jetten, Molenberghs, Bastian, & Karnadewi, 2016), suggesting that we can benefit inherently from eliciting support. However, it could also be theorized that this capacity is best applied flexibly, so that we expand and contract our social overtures according to the specific contexts we find ourselves in (Bonanno & Burton, 2013).…”

Multiple teams, multiple projects, multiple groups at the intersection of (multiple) research fields: A bibliometric study

“…In the context of acquired brain injury belonging to multiple groups lowered depression symptoms because exposure to multiple groups gave participants the chance to practice and develop self-regulatory skills (Kinsella et al, 2020). The study of Ferris et al (2016) also showed that being part of multiple groups leads to an increase in communication about pain and this communication reduced brain activation in regions associated with pain. Being part of multiple groups is in this context, a resource that diminishes pain.…”

Incidental physical pain reduces brain activities associated with affective social feedback and increases aggression

“…For example, physical pain has been found to promote prosocial behaviors, such as cooperation and trust, implicating the evolutionarily adaptive significance of pain ( Bastian et al. , 2014 ; Ferris et al. , 2016 ; Wang et al.…”