Abstract
BACKGROUND: Top-down characteristics of an observer influence the detection and estimation of a sufferer's pain. A comprehensive understanding of these characteristics is important because they influence observer helping behaviours and the sufferer's experience of pain. OBJECTIVES: To examine the hypothesis that individuals who score high in trait anxiety would perceive more intense pain in others, as indicated by a larger negative response bias, and that this association would persist after adjusting for pain catastrophizing. METHODS: Healthy young adult participants (n=99; 50 male) watched videos containing excerpts of facial expressions taken from patients with shoulder pain and were asked to rate how much pain the patient was experiencing using an 11-point numerical rating scale. Sensitivity and response bias were calculated using signal detection methods. RESULTS: Trait anxiety was a predictor of response bias after statistically adjusting for pain catastrophizing and observer sex. More anxious individuals had a proclivity toward imputing greater pain to a sufferer. CONCLUSIONS: Individuals scoring higher on trait anxiety were more likely to impute pain to a sufferer. Anxious caregivers may be better able to respond with appropriate intervention once pain behaviour is detected, or they may exacerbate symptoms by engaging in excessive palliative care and solicitous behaviour.