Reimagining pain

The impact of mental imagery on pain perception
Young woman with clouds overlaid

Reimagining pain

The impact of mental imagery on pain perception
Title: Reimagining Pain: The Impact of Mental Imagery on Pain Perception
Funding amount: AU$668,000 (≈ £340,000)
Location: School of Psychology, University of Sydney
Dates: 2025–2027
University of Plymouth Co-I: Dr Julie Ji
 

Overview

This project investigates how mental imagery shapes pain perception, anxiety, and expectancy. Using controlled experiments and immersive virtual reality, it examines the causal role of imagery in amplifying or maintaining pain experiences.

Objectives 

  • Determine how specific features of mental imagery influence pain perception.
  • Test the causal relationship between imagery and pain using experimental methods.
  • Develop a more comprehensive psychological model of pain that incorporates imagery processes.
  • Generate foundations for scalable, low-cost imagery-based interventions for chronic pain.

We know that there are a wide range of interventions designed to reduce, prevent, and protect from gambling-related harms and that these are being measured in a variety of ways.

This project pioneers the first comprehensive investigation into the influence of mental imagery on pain perception.

Julie JiDr Julie Ji
Associate Professor of Psychology

Context of the issue

Chronic pain affects up to 28 million adults in the UK and remains difficult to treat effectively. Existing psychological models emphasise thoughts and emotions but largely overlook mental imagery, despite its frequent, intrusive, and distressing nature in people experiencing chronic pain. This gap limits both theoretical understanding and treatment innovation.

How the project addresses the issue

The project integrates cognitive science and clinical psychology to systematically test the role of mental imagery in pain. Through rigorous experimental designs, virtual reality paradigms, and real-world experience sampling, it isolates imagery-specific mechanisms. By clarifying how imagery contributes to pain perception, the research establishes a theoretical and empirical basis for novel, cost-effective interventions with potential clinical and societal impact.

Centre for the Psychology of Health and Wellbeing

The Centre for the Psychology of Health and Wellbeing (CPHW) at the University of Plymouth brings together researchers in clinical, cognitive, social, and environmental psychology to understand and improve health in real-world contexts.
The CPHW's interdisciplinary research addresses health and wellbeing across the lifespan, and integrates theoretical models and methods from neuroscience, cognition and applied social and health psychology.
 
Blue rose petal with dew for the CPHW