Linking interpretation bias to individual differences in pain sensitivity

Objective: Individual differences in pain sensitivity play a role in the development and maintenance of chronic pain. Previous studies have shown more interpretation and memory biases toward pain-related information in chronic pain patients than in healthy controls. Yet, it remains unclear whether interpretation and/or memory biases in healthy individuals vary with the level of pain sensitivity. Methods: Two groups of healthy participants with high or low pain sensitivity (HPS and LPS) were recruited based on their scores on a pain-sensitivity questionnaire, which categorization was verified by an experimental pain-sensitivity test. Interpretation bias was indirectly assessed by an incidental learning task that measured the tendency to interpret ambiguous expressions as either painful or happy, and memory bias was assessed by an image-recognition task that used images depicting painful or neutral situations. Results: Participants in the HPS group tended to interpret ambiguous expressions as painful, indicative of interpretation bias toward pain, which was not observed in the LPS group. Participants overall generally recognized pain-related images more accurately and quickly than neutral images, indicative of memory bias toward pain, which did not differ between the two groups. Conclusion: Individual variation in pain sensitivity is related to an interpretation bias toward pain but not to a memory bias. The observed link between pain-sensitivity profiles and interpretation bias in healthy individuals suggests the potential role of interpretation bias in chronic pain development and maintenance. Intervention to reduce interpretation bias toward pain might be helpful in the prevention and treatment of chronic pain.