Expectations and Attitudes Regarding Chronic Pain Control: An Exploration Using Mind Genomics

Abstract

We present the emerging science of Mind Genomics, to understand people’s responses to health-related issues, specifically pain. Mind Genomics emerge out of short, affordable, scalable, east-to-run experiments. The topic, here pain, is deconstructed into four questions, each with four separate answers (elements.) The answers are combined into vignettes, presented to respondents, who rate the entire vignette. Emerging from the study are the ratings and the response times to the vignettes, both of which are deconstructed into the contributions of the different underlying elements which the vignettes comprise. The answers cannot be gamed, and the data quickly reveal what is important to the individual, as well as revealing the existence of new-to-the-world mind-sets which differ in the pattern of elements that they find important. Mind Genomics provides the opportunity to understand the person’s needs and wants for specific health as well as other experiential situations where human judgment is relevant.