Biological research on mental pain, social pain and other pains not primarily felt in the body: methodological systematic review.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Researchers explore the biology of painful experiences not primarily felt in the body ('non-physical pain'), sometimes referred to as mental, social or emotional pain. A critical challenge lies in how to operationalise this subjective experience for biological research, a crucial process for translating findings into clinical practice.

Aims

To map studies investigating biological features of non-physical pain, focusing on their conceptual features (i.e. terms and definitions of non-physical pain) and methodological characteristics (e.g. experimental paradigms and measures).

Method

This methodological systematic review searched reports of primary research on the biological features of non-physical pain across Embase, MEDLINE and Web of Science. Using a meta-

SUBMITTER: Durante EK 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12492066 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature