Perspective-taking training to strengthen the patient–clinician connection
Official title: Impact of Theory of Mind Training on Brain-to-Brain Patient-Clinician Concordance
Funded at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital · NIH-11261031 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This work teaches people with fibromyalgia skills to better take another person's perspective to strengthen brain-to-brain connections with their clinician and help reduce pain during acupuncture.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Charlestown, United States) |
| Project start | April 4, 2023 |
| Project end | January 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $651,589 |
| NIH project number | 5R01AT012144-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-11261031 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Adults with fibromyalgia and chronic pain who can undergo MRI scanning and attend acupuncture and training sessions would be the ideal participants.
✕Less likely to help
People without fibromyalgia or chronic pain, or those who cannot have an MRI (for example due to metal implants, severe claustrophobia, or pregnancy), are unlikely to be helped by participating.
What this research studies
You would get training in theory-of-mind (perspective-taking) skills and then take part in acupuncture visits where both you and your clinician have simultaneous brain scans (fMRI hyperscanning) to measure shared brain activity. The team will measure temporoparietal junction (TPJ) concordance, facial expression mirroring, and the quality of the therapeutic relationship alongside your reported pain. Changes in brain-to-brain concordance after the training will be compared with pain relief and alliance scores to see if mentalizing explains any pain improvements. The approach builds on earlier work linking TPJ concordance and mirroring to analgesia and uses established ToM training methods.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could lead to non-drug ways to boost the patient–clinician bond and improve pain relief for people with fibromyalgia.
How similar studies have gone: Prior hyperscanning work from the team found TPJ brain-to-brain concordance linked to analgesia and separate studies show ToM training can improve mentalizing, but combining ToM training with clinician–patient hyperscanning and acupuncture outcomes is a novel application.
Where this research is happening
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Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital
Charlestown, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Napadow, Vitaly — Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital
- Study coordinator: Napadow, Vitaly
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.