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Social Modeling Interventions for Enhancing Placebo Effect

N/A

Waitlist Available

Led By Tor D Wager, PhD

Research Sponsored by Trustees of Dartmouth College

Eligibility Criteria Checklist

Specific guidelines that determine who can or cannot participate in a clinical trial

Must have

Fluent or native speakers of English

No current psychiatric or major neurological diagnosis

Must not have

Metal in body or prior history working with metal fragments (e.g., as a machinist)

Neuroendocrine disorders (e.g., Cushings disease)

Timeline

Screening 3 weeks

Treatment Varies

Follow Up daily for: 2 weeks before scan, 2 weeks after last scan. weekly for 1 year after last session.

Awards & highlights

No Placebo-Only Group

Summary

This trial is studying how well two different methods of enhancing the placebo effect work, using brain scans to measure the results.

Who is the study for?

This trial is for English-speaking individuals without psychiatric/neurological disorders, substance abuse history, or pathological pain. They must be able to perform tasks and undergo fMRI scans, not have metal implants, and abstain from alcohol/substances before the study.

What is being tested?

The study examines how social modeling (observing treatment outcomes in others) and personal treatment experiences affect placebo effects on pain relief. Participants are divided into four groups to observe these effects using behavioral tests and fMRI scans over three months.

What are the potential side effects?

Since this trial focuses on placebo effects through non-invasive methods like observation and experience without actual drugs involved, there are no direct side effects from interventions typically associated with medication.

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

You may be eligible if you check “Yes” for the criteria below

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I am a fluent or native English speaker.

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I do not have any major psychiatric or neurological conditions.

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I don't have ongoing severe pain or neurological disorders.

Exclusion Criteria

You may be eligible for the trial if you check “No” for criteria below:

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I have metal in my body or have worked with metal fragments.

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I have a neuroendocrine disorder like Cushing's disease.

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I have been diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome.

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I have taken antipsychotics, isoniazid, or certain blood pressure medicines.

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I have a seizure disorder.

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My blood pressure is not stable.

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I have a tumor or mass lesion.

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I have a condition related to inflammation of the blood vessels in my brain, or an autoimmune disease.

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I have or had cancer.

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I have a condition like multiple sclerosis affecting my brain or spinal cord.

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I do not have a brain infection.

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My thyroid condition is not being treated.

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I have a movement disorder that is not familial tremor.

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I am currently experiencing pain.

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I suffer from long-term pain.

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I have had a head injury that made me lose consciousness.

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I have had a stroke or mini-strokes before.

Timeline

Screening ~ 3 weeks3 visits

Treatment ~ Varies

Follow Up ~ daily for: 2 weeks before scan, 2 weeks after last scan. weekly for 1 year after last session.

Screening ~ 3 weeks

Treatment ~ Varies

Follow Up ~daily for: 2 weeks before scan, 2 weeks after last scan. weekly for 1 year after last session.

This trial's timeline: 3 weeks for screening, Varies for treatment, and daily for: 2 weeks before scan, 2 weeks after last scan. weekly for 1 year after last session. for reporting.

Treatment Details

Study Objectives

Study objectives can provide a clearer picture of what you can expect from a treatment.

Primary study objectives

Brain: signature responses to pain and aversive images

Intervention effects on aversive image ratings

Intervention effects on pain ratings

Secondary study objectives

CliexaEase App ratings

Heart rate

Interpersonal Reactivity Index

+2 more

Awards & Highlights

No Placebo-Only Group

All patients enrolled in this study will receive some form of active treatment.

Trial Design

4Treatment groups

Experimental Treatment

Group I: Observed Success - Experienced SuccessExperimental Treatment2 Interventions

This participant group (N=30) will witness a successful placebo during the "observation phase" (i.e. the demonstrator will display reduced pain expressions after receiving the cream) and experience a successful placebo during the "experience phase" (i.e. the experimenter will reduce the intensity of the pain stimuli after applying the cream).

Group II: Observed Success - Experienced FailureExperimental Treatment2 Interventions

This participant group (N=30) will witness a successful placebo during the "observation phase" (i.e. the demonstrator will not display reduced pain expressions after receiving the cream) and experience a failed placebo during the "experience phase" (i.e. the experimenter will not reduce the intensity of the pain stimuli after applying the cream).

Group III: Observed Failure - Experienced SuccessExperimental Treatment2 Interventions

Group IV: Observed Failure - Experienced FailureExperimental Treatment2 Interventions

This participant group (N=30) will witness a failed placebo during the "observation phase" (i.e. the demonstrator will not display reduced pain expressions after receiving the cream) and experience a failed placebo during the "experience phase" (i.e. the experimenter will not reduce the intensity of the pain stimuli after applying the cream).

0 / 20Eligibility criteria met