Does affective touch buffer emotional distress? Insights from subjective and physiological indices.

ABSTRACT: Affective touch, mediated by the activation of C-tactile afferents, has the potential to modulate affective states and physiological responses in situations of emotional distress across the lifespan. The present study aims to disentangle psychophysiological mechanisms supporting autonomic and emotional self-regulation, focusing on the possible buffering role of affective touch. Childless adult participants (N = 92) were presented with videos of an infant babbling (positive scene) and an infant crying (emotionally negative scene), followed by a tactile stimulation that was either affective (brushing) or non-affective (tapping). We collected subjective measures of affective state (valence and arousal) and physiological measures: heart rate (HR), HR variability (root mean square of successive

SUBMITTER: Della Longa L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12478029 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature