U.S., Jan. 27 -- ClinicalTrials.gov registry received information related to the study (NCT07367672) titled 'The Power of Belief: Expectation-driven and Placebo Modulation of Empathic Pain' on Dec. 26, 2025.
Brief Summary: This study investigates how belief and expectation influence empathic pain-the pain we feel when observing others in distress. Healthy adult participants will be randomly assigned to one of three groups: no-treatment control, placebo nasal spray, oxytocin-containing nasal spray. Participants in both the placebo and oxytocin conditions will be informed that they are receiving oxytocin, described as a potent agent for pain relief. During functional MRI scanning, all participants will view naturalistic pain-related videos a...