Holding soft objects increases expectation and disappointment in the Cyberball task

When a person is excluded from a group, she/he often experiences negative emotions, referred to as social pain. Previous studies have reported that touching/holding soft objects can lead to a decrease of negative attitude toward uncertain events, and it is possible that such physical intervention may also be effective for reducing social pain induced by the group exclusion. This study examines the effects of holding soft objects on social pain. Participants held either a soft or hard cushion while performing the Cyberball task, a virtual ball-tossing game that experimentally controls social exclusion. In addition to the subjective rating of social pain, we measured the contingent negative variation (CNV) of event-related potentials, a variable related to perceivers’ expectations about forthcoming events. Results showed that, contrary to our prediction, holding a soft cushion increased the subjective rating of social pain. Furthermore, holding a soft cushion increased the amplitude of CNV while performing the Cyberball task. These results suggest that holding soft objects increases expectations about uncertain forthcoming events, but it does not reduce negative emotion.