Learning to fear pain after observing another’s pain: An experimental study in schoolchildren

BackgroundChildren of individuals with chronic pain have an increased vulnerability to experience pain problems, possibly through observation of pain in their parents. As pain‐related fear (PRF) is a critical factor in the development and maintenance of chronic pain, the current experimental study examined the acquisition of PRF through observational learning and subsequent extinction after first‐hand experience of the feared stimulus.MethodsHealthy children (8–16 years) observed either their mother or a stranger performing two cold pressor tasks (CPT) filled with coloured water. In a differential conditioning procedure, one colour (CS+) was combined with genuine painful facial expressions and the other colour (CS‐) with neutral facial expressions. Following this observation phase, children performed both CPTs (10°C) themselves.ResultsChildren expected the CS + to be more painful than the CS‐ and they reported being more afraid and hesitant to immerse in the CS + compared to the CS‐. Moreover, this fear was reflected in children's level of arousal in anticipation of CPT performance. This learned association extinguished after performing both CPTs. Effects were not moderated by whether the child observed their mother or a stranger, by the child's pain catastrophizing, trait PRF or trait anxiety. Remarkably, learning effects increased when the child perceived a larger difference between the model's painful and neutral facial expressions.ConclusionsThis study provides evidence for observational learning of PRF and subsequent extinction in schoolchildren. This acquisition of PRF by observing parental pain may contribute to vulnerabilities in children of parents with chronic pain.

Publication year:2020