Barking up the wrong tree

Studies exploring the role of humor in pain perception involve showing participants funny videos prior to the “cold presser task,” in which participants submerge their hand into very cold water for as long as possible. Researchers measure the time it takes before the participants declare that the task is painful, indicating “pain threshold,” and the subsequent time that they can bear the pain, known as “pain tolerance.” One study found that when participants view a humorous video, compared to neutral and negative videos in similar length and interest level, they show increased levels of pain tolerance and duration.

--

You should follow me on Twitter here or subscribe to this blog's feed. If you're a regular reader please support the blog by doing your book and movie shopping at the store. You'll find all my recommendations there. Here are the site's most popular posts of all time.