The perception of affective touch in women affected by obesity
IntroductionPleasant and comforting bodily contacts characterized intimate and affective interactions. Affective touch informs us about others’ emotions and intentions, sustains intimacy and closeness, protecting from loneliness and psychological distress. Previous evidence points to an altered expe...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2023-08-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Psychology |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1171070/full |
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| author | Sofia Tagini Sofia Tagini Massimo Scacchi Massimo Scacchi Alessandro Mauro Alessandro Mauro Federica Scarpina Federica Scarpina |
| author_facet | Sofia Tagini Sofia Tagini Massimo Scacchi Massimo Scacchi Alessandro Mauro Alessandro Mauro Federica Scarpina Federica Scarpina |
| author_sort | Sofia Tagini |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | IntroductionPleasant and comforting bodily contacts characterized intimate and affective interactions. Affective touch informs us about others’ emotions and intentions, sustains intimacy and closeness, protecting from loneliness and psychological distress. Previous evidence points to an altered experience of affective touch in clinical populations reporting interpersonal difficulties. However, there is no investigation of affective touch in obesity, which is often associated with negative affective-relational experiences since childhood.MethodsThis study aimed to provide the first evidence about the experience of affective touch in obesity by comparing 14 women with obesity with 14 women with healthy weight. Participants rated the pleasantness of both imagined and actual tactile stimuli, which consisted of (i) soft-brush strokes, (ii) touches of the experimenter’s hand, and (iii) of a plastic stick (as control, non-affective, stimulation). Participants should report the pleasantness of each kind of touch. Moreover, we explored lifespan experiences of affective touch and interpersonal pleasure in social contexts through self-report questionnaires.ResultsNo differences emerged for the pleasantness of affective touch (in both the real and imagery task) between the two groups. However, participants with obesity reported less frequent and less satisfying early experiences of affective touch when compared with the controls.DiscussionOur results spoke in favor of a preserved experience of affective touch when experimentally probed in obesity, despite a limited early exposure to bodily affective contacts. We interpreted our results in the light of the social reconnection hypothesis. Nevertheless, we provided crucial methodological considerations for future research, considering that both the experimenter’s and the brush touch may not resemble adequately real-life experiences, in which affective touch involves intimate people. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T13:08:13Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-434e42d6f7e04150904d14492313d469 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-1078 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T13:08:13Z |
| publishDate | 2023-08-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Psychology |
| spelling | doaj.art-434e42d6f7e04150904d14492313d4692023-08-28T08:35:57ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782023-08-011410.3389/fpsyg.2023.11710701171070The perception of affective touch in women affected by obesitySofia Tagini0Sofia Tagini1Massimo Scacchi2Massimo Scacchi3Alessandro Mauro4Alessandro Mauro5Federica Scarpina6Federica Scarpina7“Rita Levi Montalcini” Department of Neurosciences, University of Turin, Turin, ItalyIstituto Auxologico Italiano, I.R.C.C.S., U.O. di Neurologia e Neuroriabilitazione, Ospedale San Giuseppe, Piancavallo, ItalyIstituto Auxologico Italiano, I.R.C.C.S., U.O. Medicina Generale, Ospedale San Giuseppe, Piancavallo, ItalyDepartment of Clinical Sciences and Community Health, University of Milan, Milan, Italy“Rita Levi Montalcini” Department of Neurosciences, University of Turin, Turin, ItalyIstituto Auxologico Italiano, I.R.C.C.S., U.O. di Neurologia e Neuroriabilitazione, Ospedale San Giuseppe, Piancavallo, Italy“Rita Levi Montalcini” Department of Neurosciences, University of Turin, Turin, ItalyIstituto Auxologico Italiano, I.R.C.C.S., U.O. di Neurologia e Neuroriabilitazione, Ospedale San Giuseppe, Piancavallo, ItalyIntroductionPleasant and comforting bodily contacts characterized intimate and affective interactions. Affective touch informs us about others’ emotions and intentions, sustains intimacy and closeness, protecting from loneliness and psychological distress. Previous evidence points to an altered experience of affective touch in clinical populations reporting interpersonal difficulties. However, there is no investigation of affective touch in obesity, which is often associated with negative affective-relational experiences since childhood.MethodsThis study aimed to provide the first evidence about the experience of affective touch in obesity by comparing 14 women with obesity with 14 women with healthy weight. Participants rated the pleasantness of both imagined and actual tactile stimuli, which consisted of (i) soft-brush strokes, (ii) touches of the experimenter’s hand, and (iii) of a plastic stick (as control, non-affective, stimulation). Participants should report the pleasantness of each kind of touch. Moreover, we explored lifespan experiences of affective touch and interpersonal pleasure in social contexts through self-report questionnaires.ResultsNo differences emerged for the pleasantness of affective touch (in both the real and imagery task) between the two groups. However, participants with obesity reported less frequent and less satisfying early experiences of affective touch when compared with the controls.DiscussionOur results spoke in favor of a preserved experience of affective touch when experimentally probed in obesity, despite a limited early exposure to bodily affective contacts. We interpreted our results in the light of the social reconnection hypothesis. Nevertheless, we provided crucial methodological considerations for future research, considering that both the experimenter’s and the brush touch may not resemble adequately real-life experiences, in which affective touch involves intimate people.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1171070/fullaffective touchobesityinterpersonal relationshipsinterpersonal pleasureimagery |
| spellingShingle | Sofia Tagini Sofia Tagini Massimo Scacchi Massimo Scacchi Alessandro Mauro Alessandro Mauro Federica Scarpina Federica Scarpina The perception of affective touch in women affected by obesity Frontiers in Psychology affective touch obesity interpersonal relationships interpersonal pleasure imagery |
| title | The perception of affective touch in women affected by obesity |
| title_full | The perception of affective touch in women affected by obesity |
| title_fullStr | The perception of affective touch in women affected by obesity |
| title_full_unstemmed | The perception of affective touch in women affected by obesity |
| title_short | The perception of affective touch in women affected by obesity |
| title_sort | perception of affective touch in women affected by obesity |
| topic | affective touch obesity interpersonal relationships interpersonal pleasure imagery |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1171070/full |
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