Rejection feels like Pain to the Brain
Thursday October 16, 2003
New studies suggests that the brain responds to rejection in ways that are very similar to the way that it responds to pain. The research, published in the October 10th issue of Science, implicated the anterior cingulate and the right ventral prefrontal cortex in both pain and "hurt feelings."
Is this why we use the term "hurt feelings?" Matthew Lienerman, one of the studies authors is quited as saying "While everyone accepts that physical pain is real, people are tempted to think that social pain is just in their heads, but physical and social pain may be more similar than we realized."
Read more about this complex research at:
Rejection really hurts, UCLA psychologists find
Is this why we use the term "hurt feelings?" Matthew Lienerman, one of the studies authors is quited as saying "While everyone accepts that physical pain is real, people are tempted to think that social pain is just in their heads, but physical and social pain may be more similar than we realized."
Read more about this complex research at:
Rejection really hurts, UCLA psychologists find