The Role of Expectations in Experimentally Induced Sadness

April 4, 2017 updated by: Winfried Rief, Philipps University Marburg Medical Center
The study aimed at identifying whether different expectations have an impact on experiencing emotions in the form of sadness.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

128

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Germany
    • Hessen
      • Marburg, Hessen, Germany, 35037
        • Philipps University Marburg

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years to 40 years (Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

Female

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • fluent in German language

Exclusion Criteria:

  • major depression
  • current intake of psychotropic medication
  • drug intake within the last two weeks
  • alcohol consumption within the last twelve hours
  • allergic to capsaicin
  • allergic to sesame oil
  • students in medicine, pharmacy, or psychology in their third year or older

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Basic Science
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Triple

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Positive placebo group
Participants receive a nasal spray that is a placebo. However, they are told that it protects from experiencing negative emotions. Participants watch a film sequence that is supposed to induce sadness.
Other: Placebo nasal spray
Other: Film Sequence
Experimental: Negative placebo group
Participants receive a nasal spray that is a placebo. However, they are told that it sensitizes for experiencing negative emotions. Participants watch a film sequence that is supposed to induce sadness.
Other: Placebo nasal spray
Other: Film Sequence
Placebo Comparator: Placebo control group
Participants receive a nasal spray that is a placebo and are told that it is a placebo. Participants watch a film sequence that is supposed to induce sadness.
Other: Placebo nasal spray
Other: Film Sequence
Other: No-treatment control group
Participants do not receive the nasal spray. Participants watch a film sequence that is supposed to induce sadness.
Other: Film Sequence

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Time Frame
Sadness (PANAS-X)
Time Frame: Directly after watching the film sequence, no follow-up assessments
Directly after watching the film sequence, no follow-up assessments

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Philipps University Marburg Medical Center

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Winfried Rief, Professor, Philipps University Marburg Medical Center

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

June 1, 2016

Primary Completion (Actual)

October 1, 2016

Study Completion (Actual)

October 1, 2016

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

June 29, 2016

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

July 25, 2016

First Posted (Estimate)

July 28, 2016

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

April 6, 2017

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

April 4, 2017

Last Verified

July 1, 2016

More Information

Terms related to this study

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 2016-02v

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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