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New preprint! This is the strangest thing I've ever gotten to study, and I love it. Some people can raise their own goosebumps *just by thinking about it*. There are THREE people in recorded history who've been studied doing this. We found about 30.https://peerj.com/preprints/26594/ …
There are so many interesting features of this phenomenon. First of all, it's hard to imagine how it's possible. The muscles which erect the goosebumps? They're smooth muscles, and have no conscious control *by definition*. "But they can still be consciously controlled!?" Yes.pic.twitter.com/w21tvpuogY
So many questions. "How rare is it?" We don't know! After we found our sample on the internet, we asked several hundred undergraduates if they experienced the same phenomenon. Some of them send yes, but those reports were trash. NONE of them could do it.
"How does it work?" We don't know! I need to get probes on someone in the same room as me, and that wasn't possible. Certainly we can infer a few things from the way it happens... but beyond that, I'm going to have to fire up the Magic Box and find out.pic.twitter.com/oO7JSaz82L
"Wait, you aren't going all alt-medicine and spiritual on me, are you?" Course not. This is a real, if somewhat unusual thing, that really happens. And here's the funny part - no-one who can do it believes it's mystical either. To them, it's 100% totally normal. Fascinating.
"So what does it feel like?" It has three features. (1) people 'tighten' something at the back of their neck or feel a pressure behind their ears (2) a sensation travels down the spine (3) goosebumps manifest on primarily the arms but also elsewhere.
"What's unusual about people who can do it?" Well, this is exploratory research, but it asked a very focused question. And it just so happened that we (think/hope) it was borne out. *VGP (voluntarily generated piloerection) subjects are *REALLY* high in personality openness.*
The reason we looked was INvoluntary goosebumps and 'chills' have their own relationship with emotion. My collaborators did a lot of this work previously. That's why they were interested. Aren't sure if this will stand up to repeated scrutiny (how could you be?)
I'll give it a 'promising' - we asked a focused question and found something. Let's not get too excited though. "What else is cool about it?" Pretty sure it's a latent ability and not conditioned. Some people only found out they could do it when they read the study description!
"Can you do it?" NO. AND IT BUGS ME TO THIS DAY. Do you know how many hours I've spent staring at my damn arms or hands, trying to focus 'energy' at the back of my head?? I feel ridiculous and I absolutely cannot do it.pic.twitter.com/NQbQM6R2oA
"What else is strange about it?" The fact that it's so normal, and has been RIGHT UNDER OUR NOSES since the first paper on it in FRIKKEN *1902*. Since then there is ONE case study in 1938 and ONE case study in 2010. And that's IT. http://www.physiology.org/doi/pdf/10.1152/ajplegacy.1902.7.4.369 …
"How did you find out about it?" I read weird old journals more than you.
Anyway, look. I won't go on about it any more, people never make it to the bottom of these threads. If you can do this, GET IN TOUCH jamesheathers@gmail.com Or post here. Especially, post a video! I'm still amazed by it. Everyone else will be too.
Oh, and if you want to SEE it, I've started another thread with a video HERE:https://twitter.com/jamesheathers/status/969961747481268224 …
I can do this easily. The sensation is very similar to what people describe as Frission/ASMR, down to the usual spinal/cranial origin. I can also direct it to different body parts. Am very curious why/what. :)
YES. GREAT. OK. Not the first person who's told me that. Prepare for a long diatribe on the difference between this and frisson/ASMR.
I'll just call both of them frisson for ease of use. VGP is cutaneous. You can see it. It has a functional definition. Frisson is *usually* not. It is a sensation. We might be able to define it with a nerve conduction study or similar, but no-one has.
People who describe frisson-related phenomenon often report something *like* without actually *being* VGP. But some VGP people just go "bang, there you are, goosebumps, isn't life fascinating". It's quite humdrum to them.
BOTH populations describe stimuli or triggers they find pleasurable. One difference is that VGP people actually practice or perform the sensation because it feels pleasant. Frisson can't be produced, but it CAN be reliably triggered. Hence the popularity of audiovisual triggers.
Basically it's all quite messy, but I'm going to try to work it out.
I can definitely induce mild frisson, but I'm miffed to report I can't seem to reliably produce goosebumps. Will work on it + report back (trained myself to wiggle my ears as a kid so maybe there's hope). I'm also a photic sneezer in case that matters, Dr. Cabinet of Curiosities
YES IT MATTERS Another marvelous wrinkle in physiology. God I love them.
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