In the study, 24 volunteers wore the device while administering an adapted version of Trier’s social stress test.
While physiological measures such as heart rate were the same throughout the experiment, participants in the control group were found to report approximately 50% lower levels of perceived stress and anxiety during cognitive tasks. This result is in line with previous studies using manual brushes.
“This is mainly because scratching hairy skin activates one of the mechanoreceptor types, C-tactile,” says one of the authors of the new study. C-tactile activates the reward circuit in the brain and creates a feeling of “pleasure”.
Source: Ferra
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