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Investigating the Effect of Pain-Related Vocalisation on Time Perception
We are currently recruiting participants to take part in an in-person study investigating what effect pain related vocalisations of swear words (and neutral words) have on someone’s ability to perceive time. The study requires you to say four words – two swear words and two neutral words – out loud while completing two tasks, twice (i.e., you complete each task while repeating a swear word and while repeating a neutral word so we can see what differences occur based on the word you were repeating). One of the tasks does involve submerging your hand in a very cold ice bath for as long as you can tolerate and all four of your vocalisations will be audio recorded. Each participant will be reimbursed with a £10 Amazon gift voucher as a thank you for taking part. University of Reading students can swap this payment for 1 SONA credit by clicking here to sign up through the SONA system. Please note that we cannot reimburse you with a SONA credit if you do not sign up through the system before participating.
PLEASE NOTE:
you need to be a native English speaker (defined as someone born in, or moved to before the age of two, a country with English as it’s primary langauge), over 18 years old, and who is not suffering from chronic pain, neuropathy, or thermoregulatory/circulatory issues to take part.
If you’d like to know more about the study, please read the information by clicking on the link to the right and/or, if you’d like to sign up to take part, simply complete the form to the right to select a date and time to come into the lab.
Why take part?
Swearing in response to pain is a common reaction but little is known about why we swear in response to pain or what effect it actually has. This study, as part of Chris’ PhD, is looking to deepen our understanding of why we swear in response to pain. Your participation will help in that goal and will help provide valuable insights into an under researched, but intriguing, human behaviour.
When, where, how long?
The study is in-person, taking place in the Pain Lab within the Centre for Integrative Neuroscience and Neurodynamics (part of the School of Psychology at the University of Reading). The study takes around 45 minutes to complete and you can book a time slot to come in that suits you by completing the online booking form to the right.
I'd like to take part but I still have some questions...
If you have questions that you’d like answering before you take part that’s totally fine. Just click the button below to be taken to our contact form so you can send us your questions and we’ll reply with the answers as soon as we can.
Book a slot to take part
If you’d like to take part, simply complete the form below to book your time slot.
Participant Information Sheet
The study has been given favourable ethical approval by the University of Reading’s School of Psychology Research Ethics Commitee (2025-186-PB; expiry 17/09/2027)