Healthy ParticipantsPoB-EPNCT07367672
The Power of Belief: Expectation-driven and Placebo Modulation of Empathic Pain
A study testing Intranasal Oxytocin (OT) 24 IU in people with Healthy Participants, run by University of Electronic Science and Technology of China at 2 sites in China.
Trial summary
This study investigates how belief and expectation influence empathic pain-the pain we feel when observing others in distress. Healthy adult participants will be randomly assigned to one of three groups: no-treatment control, placebo nasal spray, oxytocin-containing nasal spray. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 18 to 30 yearsHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Healthy Participants
- What is being tested?
- Intranasal Oxytocin (OT) 24 IU
- Could I receive a placebo?
- Yes, some participants may receive a placebo
- How many people
- 120 participants
- Where
- 2 sitesChina
- Study dates
- 1 Dec 2025to 30 Mar 2026
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- Not yet: the study is under way
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 18 to 30 years
- All sexes
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Adult
Who may be able to join
- (1) Healthy subjects without any past or present psychiatric or neurological disorders; (2) Healthy subjects without any current psychotherapeutic medication.
Who cannot join
- (1) Participant with any past or present psychiatric or neurological disorders; (2)Participant with any current psychotherapeutic medication.
Trial locations and contacts
2 sites in 1 country. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.
China2 sites, 2 recruiting
- Recruiting
Weihua Zhao
Chengdu, Sichuan, 611731
Weihua Zhao, Phd, 18780247797, zarazhao@uestc.edu.cn
Weihua Zhao
- Enrolling by invitation
University of Electronic Science and Technology of China
Chengdu
About this study
This study investigates how belief and expectation influence empathic pain-the pain we feel when observing others in distress. Healthy adult participants will be randomly assigned to one of three groups: no-treatment control, placebo nasal spray, oxytocin-containing nasal spray. Participants in both the placebo and oxytocin conditions will be informed that they are receiving oxytocin, described as a potent agent for pain relief. During functional MRI scanning, all participants will view naturalistic pain-related videos and provide ratings of perceived subjective pain. The study aims to examine how cognitive beliefs and neuromodulatory interventions alter subjective pain experience and brain activity, including changes in brain network communication.
Read the detailed description
This study examines how belief-driven expectations modulate empathic pain at both behavioral and neural levels. Healthy adult participants will be randomly assigned to one of three groups: no-treatment control, placebo nasal spray, oxytocin-containing nasal spray. Participants in both the placebo and oxytocin conditions will be informed that they are receiving oxytocin, described as a potent agent for pain relief.
During fMRI scanning, participants will complete a naturalistic empathic pain task by viewing videos depicting others in pain and rating their perceived pain on a standardized scale. Behavioral data will be transformed into analgesia-weighted scores to capture individual sensitivity to expectation-driven analgesia. Neural data will include whole-brain voxel-wise activity, multivariate predictive patterns derived from partial least squares regression (PLSR), and directed functional connectivity assessed using lagged partial-correlation directionality analysis (LPC-DA) to evaluate top-down and bottom-up information flow.
The primary objectives are to (1) assess the behavioral effects of expectation-driven analgesia, (2) identify brain regions predictive of pain modulation, and (3) characterize hierarchical network reorganization under different interventions.
- Conditions
- Healthy Participants
- Being tested
- Intranasal Oxytocin (OT) 24 IU, Intranasal placebo administration
- Keywords
- Analgesic expectation, Empathic pain, fMRI, Oxytocin, Placebo
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Intranasal Oxytocin (OT) 24 IUDrug
Also called Intranasal Oxytocin
Administer oxytocin (24 IU) intranasally, 6 individual 0.1 ml puffs (4 IU/0. 1ml), three puffs per nostril one every 30 seconds. The participants will be informed that they are receiving oxytocin, described as a potent agent for pain relief.
Intranasal placebo administrationDrug
Also called Intranasal placebo
Administer placebo intranasally, 6 individual 0.1 ml puffs, three puffs per nostril one every 30 seconds. The participants will be informed that they are receiving oxytocin, described as a potent agent for pain relief.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Intranasal Oxytocin | Active comparator | Administer oxytocin (24 IU) intranasally. Receives: Drug: Intranasal Oxytocin (OT) 24 IU |
| Intranasal placebo | Active comparator | Administer placebo intranasally. Receives: Drug: Intranasal placebo administration |
| Intranasal nothing (control) | No intervention | Control condition |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Analgesia-weighted empathic pain ratings (R')
Subjective pain ratings for each stimulus adjusted for treatment-specific baseline and analgesia-dependent gain to capture individual sensitivity to expectation-driven analgesia.
Measured: During fMRI scanning (45 minutes follollowing treament adminstration), for each video stimulus presentation
Whole-brain multivariate predictive patterns
Partial least squares regression (PLSR) will be applied to voxel-wise fMRI contrast maps to identify latent components that predict analgesia-weighted pain scores under different interventions.
Measured: During fMRI scanning (45 minutes follollowing treament adminstration), analyzed post-session
Directed functional connectivity and network hierarchy
Lagged partial-correlation directionality analysis (LPC-DA) among key regions identified by PLSR will quantify top-down and bottom-up information flow in empathic pain circuits.
Measured: During fMRI scanning (45 minutes follollowing treament adminstration), analyzed post-session
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted26 Jan 2026
- Study start1 Dec 2025
- Primary completion20 Feb 2026 (estimated)
- Study completion30 Mar 2026 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Other trials for Healthy ParticipantsStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Basic science
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Model description
- The placebo (PLC) and oxytocin (OXT) spray conditions were conducted under a single-blind design due to all participants in both the placebo and oxytocin conditions will be informed that they are receiving oxytocin, described as a potent agent for pain relief.
- Masking
- Double blind
- Who is masked
- Investigator, Outcomes assessor
- Enrolment
- 120 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- University of Electronic Science and Technology of China
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Weihua Zhao, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China
- Investigators
- Siying Wang, Study chair, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07367672
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- UESTC-neuSCAN-102
- Acronym
- PoB-EP
- Status last verified
- Jan 2026
- First submitted
- 26 Dec 2025
- Last updated
- 26 Jan 2026
- Results posted
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- No
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 26 Jan 2026. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- The Power of Belief: Expectation-driven and Placebo Modulation of Empathic Pain
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07367672
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- PoB-EP / UESTC-neuSCAN-102
- Conditions
- Healthy Participants
- Keywords
- Analgesic expectation, Empathic pain, fMRI, Oxytocin, Placebo
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Recruiting
- Enrolment
- 120 participants (estimated)
- Lead sponsor
- University of Electronic Science and Technology of ChinaUniversity, hospital or other
- Study start
- 1 Dec 2025 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 20 Feb 2026 (estimated)
- Study completion
- 30 Mar 2026 (estimated)
- First posted
- 26 Jan 2026 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
This study investigates how belief and expectation influence empathic pain-the pain we feel when observing others in distress. Healthy adult participants will be randomly assigned to one of three groups: no-treatment control, placebo nasal spray, oxytocin-containing nasal spray. Participants in both the placebo and oxytocin conditions will be informed that they are receiving oxytocin, described as a potent agent for pain relief. During functional MRI scanning, all participants will view naturalistic pain-related videos and provide ratings of perceived subjective pain. The study aims to examine how cognitive beliefs and neuromodulatory interventions alter subjective pain experience and brain activity, including changes in brain network communication.
Detailed description
This study examines how belief-driven expectations modulate empathic pain at both behavioral and neural levels. Healthy adult participants will be randomly assigned to one of three groups: no-treatment control, placebo nasal spray, oxytocin-containing nasal spray. Participants in both the placebo and oxytocin conditions will be informed that they are receiving oxytocin, described as a potent agent for pain relief.
During fMRI scanning, participants will complete a naturalistic empathic pain task by viewing videos depicting others in pain and rating their perceived pain on a standardized scale. Behavioral data will be transformed into analgesia-weighted scores to capture individual sensitivity to expectation-driven analgesia. Neural data will include whole-brain voxel-wise activity, multivariate predictive patterns derived from partial least squares regression (PLSR), and directed functional connectivity assessed using lagged partial-correlation directionality analysis (LPC-DA) to evaluate top-down and bottom-up information flow.
The primary objectives are to (1) assess the behavioral effects of expectation-driven analgesia, (2) identify brain regions predictive of pain modulation, and (3) characterize hierarchical network reorganization under different interventions.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Basic science
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- Double blind (investigator, outcomes assessor)
- Number of arms
- 3
- Model description
- The placebo (PLC) and oxytocin (OXT) spray conditions were conducted under a single-blind design due to all participants in both the placebo and oxytocin conditions will be informed that they are receiving oxytocin, described as a potent agent for pain relief.
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Intranasal Oxytocin | Active comparator | Drug: Intranasal Oxytocin (OT) 24 IUAdminister oxytocin (24 IU) intranasally. |
| Intranasal placebo | Active comparator | Drug: Intranasal placebo administrationAdminister placebo intranasally. |
| Intranasal nothing (control) | No intervention | –Control condition |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 18 to 30 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Accepted
- Age groups
- Adult
Key inclusion criteria (1 listed)
- (1) Healthy subjects without any past or present psychiatric or neurological disorders; (2) Healthy subjects without any current psychotherapeutic medication.
Key exclusion criteria (1 listed)
- (1) Participant with any past or present psychiatric or neurological disorders; (2)Participant with any current psychotherapeutic medication.
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| Intranasal Oxytocin (OT) 24 IUAlso: Intranasal OxytocinAdminister oxytocin (24 IU) intranasally, 6 individual 0.1 ml puffs (4 IU/0. 1ml), three puffs per nostril one every 30 seconds. The participants will be informed that they are receiving oxytocin, described as a potent agent for pain relief. | Drug | Intranasal Oxytocin |
| Intranasal placebo administrationAlso: Intranasal placeboAdminister placebo intranasally, 6 individual 0.1 ml puffs, three puffs per nostril one every 30 seconds. The participants will be informed that they are receiving oxytocin, described as a potent agent for pain relief. | Drug | Intranasal placebo |
Primary outcome
Analgesia-weighted empathic pain ratings (R')
Time frame: During fMRI scanning (45 minutes follollowing treament adminstration), for each video stimulus presentation
Subjective pain ratings for each stimulus adjusted for treatment-specific baseline and analgesia-dependent gain to capture individual sensitivity to expectation-driven analgesia.
Whole-brain multivariate predictive patterns
Time frame: During fMRI scanning (45 minutes follollowing treament adminstration), analyzed post-session
Partial least squares regression (PLSR) will be applied to voxel-wise fMRI contrast maps to identify latent components that predict analgesia-weighted pain scores under different interventions.
Directed functional connectivity and network hierarchy
Time frame: During fMRI scanning (45 minutes follollowing treament adminstration), analyzed post-session
Lagged partial-correlation directionality analysis (LPC-DA) among key regions identified by PLSR will quantify top-down and bottom-up information flow in empathic pain circuits.
Results and safety
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 26 Jan 2026.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: No
Related trials for Healthy Participants
Not yet recruitingPhase 1
A Phase I Study of GLR2053 Tablets in Chinese Healthy Adult Participants
Atopic Dermatitis
Not yet recruiting
Neuroergonomic Analysis of a Brain-Computer Interface Device (BCI)
Healthy Volunteers - Male and Female
RecruitingPhase 1
First-in-Human Trial to Assess REGN20423 in Healthy Adult Participants and Adult Participants With Atopic Dermatitis
Healthy Volunteer, Atopic Dermatitis
RecruitingPhase 1
A Study to Evaluate the Metabolism, the Routes and Extent of Elimination, and Drug Levels of [14C]Navlimetostat (BMS-986504) in Healthy Female Participants
Healthy Female Participants
Not yet recruiting
REM Enhancement Sleep Technology for Well-being, Emotion, and Life Lift
Healthy Adult Participants
Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part.
Siying Wang study chair
University of Electronic Science and Technology of China
2 sites in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing Intranasal Oxytocin (OT) 24 IU in people with Healthy Participants, run by University of Electronic Science and Technology of China at 2 sites in China.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 1 inclusion and 1 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: looking for participants now, as of the sponsor's last update on 26 Jan 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 2 sites in China. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
Are results available for this study?
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
Contact Weihua Zhao (+8618780247797, zarazhao@uestc.edu.cn), or a site near the patient. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Analgesia-weighted empathic pain ratings (R') (time frame: During fMRI scanning (45 minutes follollowing treament adminstration), for each video stimulus presentation). The study lists 3 primary outcomes in all. It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 26 Jan 2026.