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Social interaction and pain: An arctic expedition

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  • Block, Per
  • Heathcote, Lauren C.
  • Burnett Heyes, Stephanie

Abstract

Complex human behaviour can only be understood within its social environment. However, disentangling the causal links between individual outcomes and social network position is empirically challenging. We present a research design in a closed real-world setting with high-resolution temporal data to understand this interplay within a fundamental human experience – physical pain. Study participants completed an isolated 3-week hiking expedition in the Arctic Circle during which they were subject to the same variation in environmental conditions and only interacted amongst themselves. Adolescents provided daily ratings of pain and social interaction partners. Using longitudinal network models, we analyze the interplay between social network position and the experience of pain. Specifically, we test whether experiencing pain is linked to decreasing popularity (increasing isolation), whether adolescents prefer to interact with others experiencing similar pain (homophily), and whether participants are increasingly likely to report similar pain as their interaction partners (contagion). We find that reporting pain is associated with decreasing popularity – interestingly, this effect holds for males only. Further exploratory analyses suggest this is at least partly driven by males withdrawing from contact with females when in pain, enhancing our understanding of pain and masculinity. Contrary to recent experimental and clinical studies, we found no evidence of pain homophily or contagion in the expedition group.

Suggested Citation

  • Block, Per & Heathcote, Lauren C. & Burnett Heyes, Stephanie, 2018. "Social interaction and pain: An arctic expedition," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 196(C), pages 47-55.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:196:y:2018:i:c:p:47-55
    DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2017.10.028
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Cunningham, Solveig A. & Vaquera, Elizabeth & Maturo, Claire C. & Venkat Narayan, K.M., 2012. "Is there evidence that friends influence body weight? A systematic review of empirical research," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 75(7), pages 1175-1183.
    2. Cosma Rohilla Shalizi & Andrew C. Thomas, 2011. "Homophily and Contagion Are Generically Confounded in Observational Social Network Studies," Sociological Methods & Research, , vol. 40(2), pages 211-239, May.
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