Digital Phenotyping of Pain Modulation and Associations Among Personality, Attachment, and Behavioral Signatures:...

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Psychology
• Digital Health

Background:

• Chronic pain transition involves dissociation between tissue damage and subjective reports, influenced by a personal 'susceptibility architecture'.
• Current pain assessment relies on text-based questionnaires, prone to linguistic bias and cognitive literacy issues.
• Hypothesis: Real-time behavioral signatures during physical challenge can characterize an individual's psychological substrate.

Purpose of the Study:

• Demonstrate identification of the 'pain-prone' phenotype via high-frequency digital pain rating assessment.
• Correlate psychometric traits with dynamic behavioral signatures for digital phenotyping.
• Establish a foundation for digital phenotyping beyond linguistic self-reports.

Main Methods:

• 534 healthy volunteers underwent controlled thermal stimulation (36°C to 48°C).
• Continuous pain intensity recorded using a high-frequency (1000 Hz) digital visual analog scale (VAS).
• Psychological profiling via NEO PI-R and Relationship Questionnaire; derived behavioral indexes: temporal augmentation index (TAI) and cognitive contrast effect.

Main Results:

• Significant main effect of time for all noxious conditions (P<.001).
• Vulnerability (NEO PI-R N6) associated with contrast magnitude (q=.03) and TAI trend (q=.09).
• Self-discipline (NEO PI-R C5) negatively associated with TAI (q=.048); mediation analysis revealed distinct stabilization and instability pathways.

Conclusions:

• Subjective pain evaluation is governed by a stable internal psychological substrate.
• Dynamic behavioral signatures provide a framework for 'digital phenotyping' of pain.
• Objective behavioral markers enable early identification of susceptibility, supporting personalized pain management.