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One Man’s Threat is Another Man’s Challenge: Applying the Biopsychosocial Model of Threat and Challenge to a Placebo Paradigm

Caplandies, Fawn C
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=toledo1533213045261036

Abstract Details

2018, Doctor of Philosophy, University of Toledo, Psychology - Experimental.
The Biopsychosocial Model of Threat and Challenge (BPS; Blascovich & Tomaka, 1996) informs research on stress and coping. The present research proposes a new application of this conceptual model: To explain occurrences of placebo and nocebo effects. It is argued here that the processes outlined in the BPS model, concerning how people cope and respond to stress, can be employed to explain how placebo and nocebo effects arise in some cases. Following a review of the BPS model and the placebo effect literature, a pilot experiment is described. In this pilot research, distinct physiological changes, in line with the predictions of the BPS model for coping with stress are exhibited among participants receiving positive placebo expectations about a treatment, compared to controls. That is, treatment expectation participants displayed greater physiological resilience to stress when they were informed they had a new resource (e.g., the treatment expectation) to deal with a situation in which the actual resources available did not change. The main experiment builds on this pilot work. In this experiment, both perceptions of resources and demands were manipulated. This experiment was designed to extend beyond the Pilot Study to demonstrate evidence for a BPS explanation of placebo effects and nocebo effects in the same paradigm. Results depicted that task engagement did not significantly differ from baseline through the performance task. In addition, participant’s completion of the performance task did not lead to significant differences between conditions. Within the BPS Model, participants provided with a resource and demand manipulation did not significantly demonstrate physiological indicators of challenge or threat. Implications and explanations of these findings, as well as directions for future research are discussed.
Andrew Geers, PhD (Advisor)
123 p.
Psychology
placebo, nocebo, threat, challenge, stress, coping, biopsychosocial model

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Caplandies, F. C. (2018). One Man’s Threat is Another Man’s Challenge: Applying the Biopsychosocial Model of Threat and Challenge to a Placebo Paradigm [Doctoral dissertation, University of Toledo]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=toledo1533213045261036

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Caplandies, Fawn. One Man’s Threat is Another Man’s Challenge: Applying the Biopsychosocial Model of Threat and Challenge to a Placebo Paradigm. 2018. University of Toledo, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=toledo1533213045261036.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Caplandies, Fawn. "One Man’s Threat is Another Man’s Challenge: Applying the Biopsychosocial Model of Threat and Challenge to a Placebo Paradigm." Doctoral dissertation, University of Toledo, 2018. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=toledo1533213045261036

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

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This open access ETD is published by University of Toledo and OhioLINK.