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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 2, 2026

The Crossmodal Congruency Task as a Means to Obtain an Objective Behavioral Measure in the Rubber Hand Illusion Paradigm

The Crossmodal Congruency Task as a Means to Obtain an Objective Behavioral Measure in the Rubber Hand Illusion Paradigm

Published on: July 26, 2013

The rubber hand illusion increases heat pain threshold.

G Hegedüs¹, G Darnai, T Szolcsányi

¹Institute of Behavioral Sciences, Medical Faculty, University of Pécs, Hungary.

European Journal of Pain (London, England)

|March 5, 2014

Summary

The rubber hand illusion (RHI) significantly increases heat pain thresholds. This analgesic effect is comparable to simply viewing one's own hand, suggesting potential clinical applications for pain management.

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Last Updated: May 2, 2026

The Crossmodal Congruency Task as a Means to Obtain an Objective Behavioral Measure in the Rubber Hand Illusion Paradigm

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Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Pain Research
Somatosensory Perception

Background:

Manipulating body representation can alleviate pain.
The rubber hand illusion (RHI) alters bodily awareness but its analgesic effect is debated.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the analgesic effect of the RHI on heat-induced finger pain.
To compare the RHI's pain-relieving effects with viewing one's own hand.

Main Methods:

Noxious heat stimuli were applied to induce finger pain in 29 healthy subjects.
Pain thresholds and ratings were measured during RHI, asynchronous control, and own-hand viewing conditions.

Main Results:

Both RHI and viewing own hand significantly increased pain thresholds compared to asynchronous control.
No significant difference in pain threshold was found between RHI and own-hand viewing.
Subjective pain ratings did not differ significantly across conditions.

Conclusions:

The RHI enhances heat pain threshold, similar to viewing one's own hand.
This comparable analgesic effect suggests potential clinical relevance for pain management strategies.