An Investigation of the Cause-Effect Relationship in Terms of the Effects of Placebo on Human Psychology

For the past 60 years, the placebo effect has served as a source of intrigue, anger, and uncertainty in the field of biomedicine. In the last decade, little attention has been paid to the development of an all-encompassing explanation of the placebo effect, although the pace of scientific research has accelerated, with a particular focus on neurological processes. In this paper, we try to fill this gap by conducting extensive evidence-based research on the plausibility and practical relevance of the placebo effect. We propose the idea that the placebo effect is primarily responsible for alleviating disease symptoms such as pain, anxiety, and fatigue, rather than altering the pathophysiology of the disease. The placebo effect is a clinical phenomenon classified as representative of the interpersonal part of recovery . This contrasts with spontaneous natural healing and technical recovery, which is based on drugs or procedures that are physiologically active. There are some considerations given to the possibility of several hypotheses underlying the development of the placebo effect. Finally, we argue that research on the placebo effect has the potential to reinvigorate the art of medicine and examine the ethical considerations associated with the use of placebo treatments in clinical practice and research on the placebo effect. In this preface to the development of the theory of the placebo effect, we look to spark discussion as well as alternative conceptualizations and theoretical hypotheses to foster a deeper and useful understanding of this evasive phenomenon . In a paper published more than a decade ago, Ader (1997, page 138) saw that "there is relatively little systematic investigation of the extent of the placebo phenomenon ; any theoretical position( s ) that would organize existing data and form the basis of new research design." Ader noted that "here, the extent of the placebo phenomenon is systematically underexplored" because "there is relatively little." It has led to significant leaps in our understanding of psychological and neurobiological processes at play , and finally, Benedetti (2009) Placebo In his book Effects , he presented "a systematic review of the spectrum of placebo phenomena".