Do placebos require deception to be effective?

What is it about?

Although it was previously believed that placebos must be given with deception, a new body of research has found that placebos can be given without deception, with the recipient fully aware they are receiving a placebo; this is referred to as an open label placebo. This study compared the effectiveness of placebos given openly (the recipient understanding it is a placebo) and deceptively (the recipient believing it is a genuine painkiller) to understand whether both placebos are effective in their own right and how their effectiveness compares.

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Why is it important?

Whilst addressing a relatively under-studied area of the placebo effect, this research utilized two novel approaches within this research area. Firstly, to our knowledge, this was the first study to administer a nasal placebo without deception. Therefore, this was the first study to investigate whether a nasal placebo administered openly would be effective. Secondly, this was the first time placebos administered openly and deceptively were compared using a cold pressor test (CPT). This was important because CPT pain mimics that experienced within chronic pain conditions, suggesting this research may be clinically useful for those suffering from genuine chronic pain. Furthermore, with the findings of this research suggesting that placebos may not require deception to be effective, this research suggests that placebos could be given ethically (without deception), without jeopardizing placebo effectiveness.

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