The DOI matches its Crossref record; 27 of the 27 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Broken Hearts and Broken Bones: A Neural Perspective on the Similarities Between Social and Physical Pain
Abstract
Although it is common to describe experiences of social rejection or loss with words typically reserved for physical pain, the idea that these social experiences might actually be experienced as painful seems more far-fetched. However, accumulating evidence demonstrates that social pain—the painful feelings following social rejection or loss—may rely on pain-related neural circuitry. Here, I summarize a program of research that has explored whether social pain relies on pain-related neural regions, as well as some of the expected consequences of a physical–social pain overlap. I also discuss the implications of these findings for our understanding of social pain.
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“This hypothesis suggests that neural resources dedicated to pain processing were co-opted over the course of evolution to make the experience of social rejection particularly salient, motivating the maintenance of close social ties and ultimately promoting evolutionary fitness (Baumeister and Leary, 1995; Eisenberger, 2012).”
From Feeling left out or just surprised? Neural correlates of social exclusion and overinclusion in adolescence (2020) · cites this paper as Eisenberger, 2012
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
Does 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
Self-citationPain Affect Encoded in Human Anterior Cingulate But Not Somatosensory Cortex
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Why Does Social Exclusion Hurt? The Relationship Between Social and Physical Pain.
MacDonald, G., & Leary, M. R. (2005) · Psychological Bulletin · doi:10.1037/0033-2909.131.2.202 · Cited by 1,712
Social communication among primates
Andrew, R. (1968) · Animal Behaviour · doi:10.1016/0003-3472(68)90131-0 · Cited by 1,403
Why rejection hurts: a common neural alarm system for physical and social pain
Eisenberger, N. I., & Lieberman, M. D. (2004) · Trends in Cognitive Sciences · doi:10.1016/j.tics.2004.05.010 · Cited by 1,246
Self-citationSocial 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
Brain mechanisms of pain affect and pain modulation
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Pain “relief” by frontal cingulumotomy
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Research works printed but not linked: 1
- MacDonald G., 2005, Psychological Review, 131, 202
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Mereish, E. H., & Poteat, V. P. (2015) · Journal of Counseling Psychology · doi:10.1037/cou0000088 · Cited by 384
When Math Hurts: Math Anxiety Predicts Pain Network Activation in Anticipation of Doing Math
Lyons, I. M., & Beilock, S. L. (2012) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0048076 · Cited by 329
Introduction to Interpersonal Acceptance-Rejection Theory (IPARTheory) and Evidence
Rohner, R. P. (2013) · Online Readings in Psychology and Culture · doi:10.9707/2307-0919.1055 · Cited by 373
The Social Modulation of Pain: Others as Predictive Signals of Salience – a Systematic Review
Krahé, C., Springer, A., Weinman, J. A., & Fotopoulou, A. (2013) · Frontiers in Human Neuroscience · doi:10.3389/fnhum.2013.00386 · Cited by 245
A Systematic Review of Black People Coping With Racism: Approaches, Analysis, and Empowerment
Jacob, G., Faber, S. C., Faber, N. S., Bartlett, A., Ouimet, A. J., & Williams, M. T. (2022) · Perspectives on Psychological Science · doi:10.1177/17456916221100509 · Cited by 218
Metadata
- Authors
- Eisenberger, N. I.
- Affiliations
- University of California, Los Angeles (US)
- Corresponding author
- Eisenberger, Naomi I.
- Venue
- Current Directions in Psychological Science
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2012-01-31
- Volume
- 21
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 42-47
- ISSN
- 0963-7214 (ISSN-L)
- 1467-8721
- OpenAlex
- W2161577472
- Cited by
- 127
- References
- 27
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 8 · 2024: 8 · 2023: 4 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 7 · 2020: 8 · 2019: 13 · 2018: 9 · 2017: 10 · 2016: 10 · 2015: 14 · 2014: 12 · 2013: 8 · 2012: 5
- FWCI
- 18.84
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Current Directions in Psychological Science (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology (medical) › Pain Mechanisms and Treatments
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Bullying, Victimization, and Aggression
- Keywords
- social pain, social rejection, loss, bodily pain, emotional pain
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