Ma. Flaten, INFORMATION ABOUT DRUG EFFECTS MODIFY AROUSAL - AN INVESTIGATION OF THE PLACEBO-RESPONSE, Nordic journal of psychiatry, 52(2), 1998, pp. 147-151
Forty-eight volunteers received information that they were ingesting a
relaxant (relaxant group), a stimulant (stimulant group), or an inact
ive substance (control group). All subjects received an inactive subst
ance. There was decreased subjective stress and arousal in the Relaxan
t group and a tendency towards increased skin conductance responses in
the stimulant group. This suggests that information about drug effect
s elicits a placebo response.