Why a Punch Hurts More If Your Attacker Really Meant It
December 2, 2008
![[Facebook]](http://mindbodyspirit4health.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/facebook.png)
![[Google]](http://mindbodyspirit4health.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/google.png)
![[Twitter]](http://mindbodyspirit4health.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/twitter.png)
![[Windows Live]](http://mindbodyspirit4health.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/windowslive.png)
![[Yahoo!]](http://mindbodyspirit4health.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/yahoo.png)
![[Email]](http://mindbodyspirit4health.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/email.png)
Your mom always told you that it’s the thought that counts. And when it comes to pain, scientists appear to have shown that intentions really do matter. Harvard researchers report that people experience more pain if they perceive that the pain is intentionally inflicted.
“When someone steps on your toe on purpose, it seems to hurt more than when the person does the same thing unintentionally. The physical parameters of the harm may not differ—your toe is flattened in both cases—but the psychological experience of pain is changed nonetheless,” the researchers report in Psychological Science [pdf].
Read the complete article by Nina Bai…
Keywords: pain, nocebo, placebo, psychology
posted by mbs4h