March 2016 PMID 26847946

Self-inflicted pain out of boredom.

Chantal Nederkoorn, Linda Vancleef, Alexandra Wilkenhöner, Laurence Claes, Remco C Havermans

Download social card

Mentions

97
Peak: 5 in Jan 2022
across 6 sources since Mar 2020

Extended reach

156,785
potential audience

Total likes

3,957

Video views

39,722

Mentions per month

Mar 2020 – Jul 2025

Where it's discussed

  • News47 articles
  • X / Twitter27 posts
  • Blogs14 articles
  • Bluesky4 posts
  • Reddit3 posts
  • YouTube2 videos

AI synopsis

What people are saying

Participants express strong agreement with the research, citing specific examples such as participants willingly shocking themselves out of boredom, and use tone and language — like 'terrible news' or 'literally' — that underscore their fascination and concern. The inclusion of scientific references and personal reflections demonstrates deep engagement, although some comments approach the topic humorously or dismissively.

AgreementStrong agreement

Most discussions confirm the study's findings, emphasizing that boredom drives individuals to self-harm through electric shocks, with several posts referencing experimental results and emphasizing the link.

InterestHigh interest

The posts reveal high curiosity about the behavior, with many engaging deeply by discussing the psychological implications and citing specific studies, indicating strong interest.

EngagementHigh engagement

Numerous posts reference scientific experiments, quote literature, or share personal insights, indicating an active and in-depth engagement with the topic.

ImpactModerate impact

The discussions highlight the significance of understanding boredom’s influence on behavior, suggesting the topic has meaningful implications for mental health and societal awareness, though some comments are more casual or humorous.

Abstract in brief

  • The study suggests that people may intentionally self-administer electric shocks out of boredom to break the monotony, rather than to manage negative emotions like sadness.
  • Participants who felt bored used more and stronger shocks compared to those watching neutral or sad films, indicating boredom's role in prompting self-injury-like behaviors.
  • The findings show that boredom, rather than negative emotions alone, is a significant trigger for nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI), especially in individuals with a history of such behaviors.

Top posts

Most liked on X and Bluesky
Jeremy Chrysler
@jeremychrysler · X

If it feels to you like people more people are just giving up on trying not to get Covid, recall the research that if forced to watch something boring, many people will actively shock themselves just to escape the monotony. https://t.co/14MQbaX4y2 https://t.co/Kxi2PddmzC

Jan 3, 2022 · 9 likes · 3 shares · 2,122 followers View post →
Erin Westgate
@ErinWestgate · X

@ErikNook @mk_nock @ShirleyBWang @KathrynFoxR Yup, that was our shock study! 2 recent studies did a better job (imo) of showing that willingness to shock yourself is due to boredom; they both found very high rates of self-administered shock in randomly assigned boredom conditions https://t.co/CVacIbUQSc

Sep 10, 2020 · 5 likes · 11,530 followers View post →
Scott Perry
@numi.st · Bluesky

Sharing bsky invites with friends after learning that bored people will "voluntarily self-administer electric shocks" https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26847946/#:~:text=Previous%20research%20has%20shown%20that,available%20external%20source%20of%20stimulation.

Jul 31, 2023 · 4 likes View post →
Ivy Jelisavac
@becauseivy.bsky.social · Bluesky

I have terrible news and it's that in an experiment where participants had the choice between sitting there bored and electrocuting themselves... they often chose the latter :( sauce pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26847946/#:~....

May 29, 2025 · 4 likes · 1 share View post →
totallynotseth.dev
@totallynotseth.dev · Bluesky

Nederkoorn C, Vancleef L, Wilkenhöner A, Claes L, Havermans RC. Self-inflicted pain out of boredom. Psychiatry Res. 2016 Mar 30;237:127-32. doi: 10.1016/j.psychres.2016.01.063. Epub 2016 Jan 28. PMID: 26847946.

Jul 5, 2025 · 3 likes View post →
BowTiedPhys
@BowTiedPhys · X

[1] https://t.co/SD4jLroPLv [2] https://t.co/5A6iGlYnEP “The mind is its own place, and in it self/Can make a Heav'n of Hell, a Hell of Heav'n.” John Milton

Aug 8, 2024 · 2 likes · 1 share · 27,797 followers View post →

All mentions

neKristīne
@cresado · X

@Madara_Ozola @sursurs Jāsaprot, ka tas nav aiz ļaunuma, tas ir aiz garlaicības&ziņkārības. Garlaicība ir tik mokoša, ka pat ja vienīgā pieejamā izklaide ir sāpes, liela daļa cilvēku (pieaugušo!) tās izvēlas. Brīvprātīgi. https://t.co/qUNyr7wmZX

Jul 11, 2025 · 367 followers View post →
totallynotseth.dev
@totallynotseth.dev · Bluesky

Nederkoorn C, Vancleef L, Wilkenhöner A, Claes L, Havermans RC. Self-inflicted pain out of boredom. Psychiatry Res. 2016 Mar 30;237:127-32. doi: 10.1016/j.psychres.2016.01.063. Epub 2016 Jan 28. PMID: 26847946.

Jul 5, 2025 · 3 likes View post →
Ivy Jelisavac
@becauseivy.bsky.social · Bluesky

I have terrible news and it's that in an experiment where participants had the choice between sitting there bored and electrocuting themselves... they often chose the latter :( sauce pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26847946/#:~....

May 29, 2025 · 4 likes · 1 share View post →
Liam O'Donohue
@liamodonohue86 · X

@daniela127 Clearly life wasn't difficult enough so she wants to make it difficult then complain about it being difficult. Some kind of covert narcissist type behaviour. What a time to be alive

Dec 3, 2024 · 526 followers View post →
RR
@RAFR1984 · X

Entre as causas estruturais e os efeitos tem de existir um nexo, alguém teve de fazer alguma coisa e foi motivado por algo: "...in response to a monotonous, boring lab situation, non-clinical participants voluntarily self-administer electric shocks." https://t.co/SSIxuWK7tu

Nov 7, 2024 · 140 followers View post →
Richard
@PGC1a_RB · X

RT @BowTiedPhys: [1] https://t.co/SD4jLroPLv [2] https://t.co/5A6iGlYnEP “The mind is its own place, and in it self/Can make a Heav'n of H…

Aug 8, 2024 · 1 share · 14,864 followers View post →
BowTiedPhys
@BowTiedPhys · X

[1] https://t.co/SD4jLroPLv [2] https://t.co/5A6iGlYnEP “The mind is its own place, and in it self/Can make a Heav'n of Hell, a Hell of Heav'n.” John Milton

Aug 8, 2024 · 2 likes · 1 share · 27,797 followers View post →
ScruggsyOne
@ScruggsyOne · X

@SeanSoundPsych Related https://t.co/4gxkl2Dr1z

Jun 24, 2024 · 2 likes · 28 followers View post →
Anand Sharma
@aprilzero · X

@nickcammarata i think thats the default state and ppl would press a button every minute to get suffering https://t.co/0ThUtzK6mh

Feb 12, 2024 · 8,509 followers View post →
Robert Goldberg
@robgoldbergo · X

@SamAdlerBell https://t.co/XNY0SvBCIg

Jan 18, 2024 · 522 followers View post →
Kit
@Kitpecs · X

Electrocution is better than boredom. Literally https://t.co/MXULOGYkEC

Jan 3, 2024 · 465 followers View post →
Sofia Jeppsson
@jeppsson.bsky.social · Bluesky

Hittade studien, skummade abstract: Verkar som att de försökte kontrollera för möjligheten att deltagarna chockade för att undkomma negativa känslor. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26847946/

Dec 4, 2023 · 2 likes · 1 share View post →
Scott Perry
@numi.st · Bluesky

Sharing bsky invites with friends after learning that bored people will "voluntarily self-administer electric shocks" https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26847946/#:~:text=Previous%20research%20has%20shown%20that,available%20external%20source%20of%20stimulation.

Jul 31, 2023 · 4 likes View post →
فاطمة
@JuustaCat · X

A crush ? U mean self-inflicted pain out of boredom !! Lol

May 16, 2023 · 16 followers View post →
Spencer
@spencemo_c · X

@eigenrobot People are tortured by their own thoughts. Would prefer to literally give themselves painful shocks instead of sitting in quietude. https://t.co/ktDyLD3RIL

Apr 2, 2023 · 659 followers View post →
Matthew Berg
@wnyconservative · X

@jonesr227 @robkhenderson There are plenty of other studies demonstrating similar behavior to avoid boredom: https://t.co/5Rf3uAlTPr

Feb 23, 2023 · 440 followers View post →
Pusat Sağyürek
@pbeysoylu · X

https://t.co/JYRwik22cM

Jan 4, 2023 · 9,980 followers View post →
DegenService
@DegenService · X

@notbunjil BUT SER, THEY ARE SO BORED... https://t.co/63TbDIQYMi

Oct 27, 2022 · 6,114 followers View post →
Squishy Mochi
@A_squishy_mochi · X

https://t.co/3qOWE61bP1 https://t.co/ICywOfnpxp https://t.co/6GQHtdq1WT https://t.co/vlxoUkhMXj https://t.co/QyZzrEux0C

Oct 9, 2022 · 128 followers View post →
Elam Bend
@ElamBend · X

RT @fred_bf: @markallanbovair Funny thing about humans is that we will voluntarily hurt ourselves to avoid boredom https://t.co/P22sngMYQN…

Jul 26, 2022 · 1 share · 978 followers View post →
Fred Bastien Forrest
@fred_bf · X

@markallanbovair Funny thing about humans is that we will voluntarily hurt ourselves to avoid boredom https://t.co/P22sngMYQN Explains a lot

Jul 26, 2022 · 1 like · 1 share · 5,134 followers View post →
★彡
@dacaffein · X

Jul 7, 2022 · 141 followers View post →
♬
@ditzyvira · X

@super_dollworld turns out , almost everyone does this , @ sufficiently high levels of boredom https://t.co/zKcfBB5vcM

Apr 14, 2022 · 1 like · 50 followers View post →
Market Mania
@MarketManiaCa · X

RT @jeremychrysler: If it feels to you like people more people are just giving up on trying not to get Covid, recall the research that if f…

Jan 4, 2022 · 3 shares · 19,812 followers View post →
Shivoham
@Ganitamrita · X

RT @jeremychrysler: If it feels to you like people more people are just giving up on trying not to get Covid, recall the research that if f…

Jan 3, 2022 · 3 shares · 1,569 followers View post →
i'm a teapot
@418MilkTea · X

RT @jeremychrysler: If it feels to you like people more people are just giving up on trying not to get Covid, recall the research that if f…

Jan 3, 2022 · 3 shares · 7 followers View post →
Alex Kaufman
@akkaufman · X

RT @jeremychrysler: If it feels to you like people more people are just giving up on trying not to get Covid, recall the research that if f…

Jan 3, 2022 · 3 shares · 4,380 followers View post →
Jeremy Chrysler
@jeremychrysler · X

If it feels to you like people more people are just giving up on trying not to get Covid, recall the research that if forced to watch something boring, many people will actively shock themselves just to escape the monotony. https://t.co/14MQbaX4y2 https://t.co/Kxi2PddmzC

Jan 3, 2022 · 9 likes · 3 shares · 2,122 followers View post →
bbb234
@bigbadbob234 · X

@CamiloMl2017 reference to https://t.co/7J2ycsGHku am seeking superstimulation and highest-tier distractions, brain starving for maximum-bandwidth-experience, like i want to shove as much noise through my eyes and ears as they can take. https://t.co/HXOawMYBeP at high volume fits my mood rn

Jul 15, 2021 · 1 like · 744 followers View post →
Erin Westgate
@ErinWestgate · X

@ErikNook @mk_nock @ShirleyBWang @KathrynFoxR Yup, that was our shock study! 2 recent studies did a better job (imo) of showing that willingness to shock yourself is due to boredom; they both found very high rates of self-administered shock in randomly assigned boredom conditions https://t.co/CVacIbUQSc

Sep 10, 2020 · 5 likes · 11,530 followers View post →
Andrew Carlton
@AndrewC89527287 · X

Psychology behind me taking up running while in quarantine https://t.co/kxSwz8A6ho

Mar 25, 2020 View post →