The role of spatial attention in pain expectations and perception

Pain not only signals potential injury but also guides learning, teaching us to avoid harmful actions. Recent work from Roys laboratory (Coll et al., 2024) highlights the role of prediction errorsthe difference between expected and actual outcomes in shaping our pain perception, depending on whether it aligns with or violates our expectations. However, the precise nature of these pain-related expectations remains unclear.
Do people expect pain as a general unpleasant experience (general negative affect hypothesis), or do they form expectations about a specific body location (spatial attention hypothesis)? This distinction is crucial: under the general affect hypothesis, all pain types would be equally shaped by learning, whereas under the spatial hypothesis, only pain at expected locations would be affected.
To test this, we will adapt Coll et al.s paradigm (2024) by introducing a spatial dimension. Sixty participants will receive thermal pain using a custom-built dual thermode device, stimulating either forearm. In a threat-conditioning design, visual cues will predict pain on one side most of the time (80%), while occasional delivery to the opposite side (20%) will create spatial surprise. If the spatial hypothesis holds, unexpected pain should elicit stronger ratings and physiological responses.

Faculty Supervisor:

Mathieu Roy

Student:

Partner:

Université de Strasbourg

Discipline:

Life Sciences

Sector:

Education

University:

McGill University

Program: