Response expectancies in a placebo study examining Vitamin B

TL;DRAbstract

Previous literature has shown response expectancies to be a major determinant of the placebo effect in numerous contexts. There has been no research examining the role of response expectancies in vitamin supplements (such as B9 & B12), even though multiple meta-analysis have shown supplements to be ineffective in healthy populations. Here we report differing expectations producing differing cognitive results. Subjects (n=54) were divided into three equal groups and presented with stroop, digit span and 15-word memory (delayed & immediate) tasks. Before starting the tasks subjects were presented with a cup of water to drink, yet the symbolic meaning differed between groups. The control group simply ingested water and completed the tasks. The blind group was presented with two cups of yellow sparkling water, they were instructed that one of the cups contained high dose B12, while in reality both cups contained water. The last group was actively deceived. They were presented with

Chat with Paper

AI Agents for this Paper