MOOD AND PAIN - THE INFLUENCE OF POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE AFFECT ON REPORTED BODY ACHES

Two experiments examined causal direction in the relationship between mood and pain. Moods were induced with the Velten (1968)procedure, and pain was measured by self-reported aches in 25 body areas. Study 1 demonstrated that affect could function as a causal antecedent of reported pain. Study 2 found that induced positive mood reduced pain; induced negative mood had no effect. The finding that positive and negative moods did not have equal and opposite effects parallels results from research on mood and memory. It was suggested that models of mood and memory may provide a useful source of ideas for research on mood and pain.