Here’s a study (honestly labeled placebo vs nothing) for irritable bowel syndrome.
I originally got it from a Science et Vie article on a study with four conditions (labeled as placebo vs as treatment; placebo vs treatment), can’t remember what for.
I agree this study is a bit silly. I’ll try to dig up the one I saw, but promise nothing.
Agree that the placebo effect may contain lying to doctors. There may also be some regression to the mean—people who are too healthy are excluded from the study, so when everyone moves at random the ones sick enough to be selected get healthier.
My understanding is that the studies establishing a placebo effect were controlled in a way that’d rule out regression to the mean as a cause of the perceived improvements. Lying to doctors does sound plausible, though.
The placebo effect is weakened but doesn’t disappear if you know it’s a placebo.
Citation needed :)
[This citation is a placebo. Pretend it’s a real citation.]
Here’s a study (honestly labeled placebo vs nothing) for irritable bowel syndrome.
I originally got it from a Science et Vie article on a study with four conditions (labeled as placebo vs as treatment; placebo vs treatment), can’t remember what for.
I remember this from earlier, see my response in that thread, and my links to Silberman and Lipson.
The study may well be measuring patients’ tendency to want to fulfill doctors’ expectations rather than any effect on the actual symptoms.
I agree this study is a bit silly. I’ll try to dig up the one I saw, but promise nothing.
Agree that the placebo effect may contain lying to doctors. There may also be some regression to the mean—people who are too healthy are excluded from the study, so when everyone moves at random the ones sick enough to be selected get healthier.
My understanding is that the studies establishing a placebo effect were controlled in a way that’d rule out regression to the mean as a cause of the perceived improvements. Lying to doctors does sound plausible, though.