Social rejection shares somatosensory representations with physical pain
University of Michigan · Columbia University · +3 more institutions
Abstract
How similar are the experiences of social rejection and physical pain? Extant research suggests that a network of brain regions that support the affective but not the sensory components of physical pain underlie both experiences. Here we demonstrate that when rejection is powerfully elicited--by having people who recently experienced an unwanted break-up view a photograph of their ex-partner as they think about being rejected--areas that support the sensory components of physical pain (secondary somatosensory cortex; dorsal posterior insula) become active. We demonstrate the overlap between social rejection and physical pain in these areas by comparing both conditions in the same individuals using functional…
Citation impact
- FWCI
- 25.97
- Percentile
- 100%
- References
- 58
Authors
5Topics & keywords
- Somatosensory system
- Insula
- Sensory system
- Insular cortex
- Psychology
- Neuroscience
- Secondary somatosensory cortex
- Extant taxon
- Reduced inequalities