Vani Mathur

Dr. Mathur's work focuses on understanding the sources of disparities in pain, and the specific mechanisms by which social and cultural factors alter pain experience and pain physiology. Her research targets the problem of pain disparities from two directions – investigating the different ways social factors may influence one's own pain, and also alter pain perception and empathy for others. To tackle these problems, her lab utilizes behavioral, psychophysical, and neuroimaging methodologies. In addition to her work on pain disparities, Dr. Mathur is also interested in individual differences in chronic pain and pain modulation, cross-cultural examinations of pain and empathy, and social environmental effects on health broadly defined.

*Boring, B.L., *Walsh, K.T., Ng, B.W., Schlegel, R.J., Mathur, V.A. (2024). Experiencing pain invalidation is associated with underreporting of pain: A social psychological perspective on pain communication. The Journal of Pain, 25(5), 104428. =Mathur, V.A., =Payano Sosa, J.S., Keaser, M.L., Meiller, T.F., Seminowicz, D.A. (2023). The social context of Burning Mouth Syndrome. Pain Medicine. =equal author contributions *Nanavaty, N., *Walsh, K.T., *Boring, B.L., Ganesan, A., Carter-Sowell, A.R., Mathur, V.A. (2023). Acute ostracism-related pain sensitization is enhanced in the context of accumulated lifetime experiences of ostracism. The Journal of Pain, 24(7), 1229-39 *Boring, B.L., *Richter, A., Mathur, V.A. (2023). Higher self-perceived stress reactivity is associated with increased chro