Psychology 2036A/B Chapter 8: CHAPTER 8 Pain
25 Apr 2018
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Document Summary
The significance of pain: although pain sucks, there are advantages to feeling pain. Insensitivity to pain can lead people to remain in one position too long causing inflammation of the joints: failure to feel pain leads one to neglect injuries healing is impeded. An injury or wound sustained by a civilian produces pain (gate is open) vs. soldier with equivalent injury does not experience the same amount of pain because they are distracted by the environment (gate is closed) If sensory input is sent into a heavily activated nervous system, the stimulation may not be perceived as pain: ex. Acute versus chronic pain: acute pain: pain that lasts less than 6 months and serves to warn of impending tissue damage or the need for convalescent rest temporary, ex. Inconsistencies in results due to the variety of noxious stimuli and measurement tools used by investigators. Cultural differences: chinese students reported higher levels of pain when undergoing the cold-pressor task than european.
