The DOI matches its Crossref record; 21 of the 21 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Feeling the Pain of Social Loss
Abstract
Poets have long waxed lyrical about the pain of a broken heart. Now, as Panksepp explains in his Perspective, this metaphor may reflect real events in the mammalian brain. A new brain neuroimaging study (Eisenberger et al.) reveals that the brain areas that are activated during the distress caused by social exclusion are also those activated during physical pain. Thus, we now have an explanation for the feeling of physical pain that accompanies emotional loss-whether that be the loss of a loved one, rejection by one's social group, or the distress of separation experienced by young animals.
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“Although these manipulations elicit distress, few would attribute to them the same level of intensity as the pain surrounding an unwanted romantic relationship breakup (14 -16).”
From Social rejection shares somatosensory representations with physical pain (2011) · cites this paper as [16]
Citations
Cites
Affective Neuroscience: The Foundations of Human and Animal Emotions
Panksepp, J. (1998) · doi:10.1093/oso/9780195096736.001.0001 · Cited by 4,428
Self-citationDoes Rejection Hurt? An fMRI Study of Social Exclusion
Eisenberger, N. I., Lieberman, M. D., & Williams, K. D. (2003) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.1089134 · Cited by 3,849
Functional neuroanatomy of emotion: A meta-analysis of emotion activation studies in PET and fMRI
Phan, K. L., Wager, T., Taylor, S. F., & Liberzon, I. (2002) · NeuroImage · doi:10.1006/nimg.2002.1087 · Cited by 3,502
Blood, A. J., & Zatorre, R. J. (2001) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.191355898 · Cited by 2,814
Anticipation of Increasing Monetary Reward Selectively Recruits Nucleus Accumbens
Knutson, B., Adams, C. M., Fong, G. W., & Hommer, D. (2001) · The Journal of Neuroscience · doi:10.1523/jneurosci.21-16-j0002.2001 · Cited by 2,244
Subcortical and cortical brain activity during the feeling of self-generated emotions
Damasio, A. R., Grabowski, T. J., Bechara, A., Damasio, H., Ponto, L. L. B., Parvizi, J., & Hichwa, R. D. (2000) · Nature Neuroscience · doi:10.1038/79871 · Cited by 2,117
Changes in brain activity related to eating chocolate: From pleasure to aversion
Small, D. M. (2001) · Brain · doi:10.1093/brain/124.9.1720 · Cited by 1,179
Beautiful Faces Have Variable Reward Value
Aharon, I., Etcoff, N., Ariely, D., Chabris, C. F., O'Connor, E., & Breiter, H. C. (2001) · Neuron · doi:10.1016/s0896-6273(01)00491-3 · Cited by 1,087
Parsing executive processes: Strategic vs. evaluative functions of the anterior cingulate cortex
Carter, C. S., Macdonald, A. M., Botvinick, M., Ross, L. L., Stenger, V. A., Noll, D. C., & Cohen, J. D. (2000) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.97.4.1944 · Cited by 954
The Functional Neuroanatomy of the Placebo Effect
Mayberg, H. S., Silva, J. A., Brannan, S., Tekell, J. L., Mahurin, R. K., McGinnis, S. M., & Jerabek, P. A. (2002) · American Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.159.5.728 · Cited by 731
Endogenous opioids and social behavior
Panksepp, J., Herman, B. H., Vilberg, T., Bishop, P., & DeEskinazi, F. G. (1980) · Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews · doi:10.1016/0149-7634(80)90036-6 · Cited by 531
Self-citationBrain processing of visual sexual stimuli in human males
Redout�, J., Stol�ru, S., Gr�goire, M.-C., Costes, N., Cinotti, L., Lavenne, F., Bars, D. L., Forest, M. G., & Pujol, J. F. (2000) · Human Brain Mapping · doi:10.1002/1097-0193(200011)11:3 · Cited by 522
Neural correlates of feeling sympathy
Decety, J., & Chaminade, T. (2002) · Neuropsychologia · doi:10.1016/s0028-3932(02)00143-4 · Cited by 426
Brain responses associated with consciousness of breathlessness (air hunger)
Mario Liotti, A., Brannan, S., Egan, G. F., Shade, R. E., Madden, L., Abplanalp, B., Robillard, R., Lancaster, J. L., Zamarripa, F., Fox, P. T., et al. (2001) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.98.4.2035 · Cited by 303
Ascending Endorphin Inhibition of Distress Vocalization
Herman, B. H., & Panksepp, J. (1981) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.7466377 · Cited by 191
Self-citationThe Physiological Control of Mammalian Vocalization
(1988) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-1-4613-1051-8 · Cited by 180
Panksepp, J. (2000) · Consciousness & Emotion · doi:10.1075/ce.1.1.04pan · Cited by 109
Self-citationNeural and Neurochemical Control of the Separation Distress Call
Panksepp, J., Normansell, L., Herman, B. H., Bishop, P., & Crepeau, L. J. (1988) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-1-4613-1051-8_15 · Cited by 93
Self-citationPanksepp, J. (2003) · Psychological Review · doi:10.1037/0033-295x.110.2.376 · Cited by 87
Self-citationBrief social isolation, pain responsivity, and morphine analgesia in young rats
Panksepp, J. (1980) · Psychopharmacology · doi:10.1007/bf00433816 · Cited by 68
Self-citationBayguinov, O. P., Hagen, B. M., Kenyon, J. L., & Sanders, K. M. (2001) · American Journal of Physiology-Cell Physiology · doi:10.1152/ajpcell.2001.281.5.c1512 · Cited by 43
Flagged first, then by citations
Research works printed but not linked: 2
- Panksepp J., in Progress in Theory in Psychopharmacology, , Cooper S. J., Ed. (Academic Press, London, 1981), pp. 149-175.
- Miller A., A Road Beyond Loss (Memorial Foundation for Lost Children, Bowling Green, OH, 1995)When I lost my daughter 12 years ago in a horrendous traffic accident, among her papers I found a poem that is now carved on her tombstone. The last stanza is particularly pertinent to the question of whether love can reduce the emotional pain of loss. When your days are full of pain, And you don't know what to do, Recall these words I tell you now –I will always care for you Full poem is published in.
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Affective consciousness: core emotional feelings in animals and humans.
Panksepp, J. (2005) · Consciousness and Cognition · doi:10.1016/j.concog.2004.10.004 · Cited by 1,217
Self-citationZadro, L., Williams, K. D., & Richardson, R. (2004) · Journal of Experimental Social Psychology · doi:10.1016/j.jesp.2003.11.006 · Cited by 1,138
Neurobiology of Aggression and Violence
Siever, L. J. (2008) · American Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.2008.07111774 · Cited by 984
Social rejection shares somatosensory representations with physical pain
Kross, E., Berman, M. G., Mischel, W., Smith, E. E., & Wager, T. D. (2011) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.1102693108 · Cited by 689
Levin, R., & Nielsen, T. A. (2007) · Psychological Bulletin · doi:10.1037/0033-2909.133.3.482 · Cited by 554
Metadata
- Authors
- Panksepp, J.
- Affiliations
- Northwestern University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Panksepp, Jaak
- Venue
- Science
- Published
- 2003-10-10
- Volume
- 302
- Issue
- 5643
- Pages
- 237-239
- ISSN
- 0036-8075 (ISSN-L)
- 1095-9203
- OpenAlex
- W1628671034
- Cited by
- 318
- References
- 21
- Citations by year
- 2026: 9 · 2025: 11 · 2024: 9 · 2023: 10 · 2022: 13 · 2021: 7 · 2020: 7 · 2019: 10 · 2018: 18 · 2017: 9 · 2016: 15 · 2015: 14 · 2014: 21 · 2013: 16 · 2012: 15
- FWCI
- 19.00
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Science (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Endocrine and Autonomic Systems › Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
- Keywords
- social exclusion, social pain, bodily pain, neural overlap, emotional loss, brain activation, rejection, grief, mammalian brain, neuroimaging
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Brain Mapping, Cerebrovascular Circulation, Emotions, Endorphins, Gyrus Cinguli, Humans, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Narcotics, Pain, Rejection, Psychology, Social Isolation, Prefrontal Cortex
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