Placebo and Nocebo Effects in Motor Performance: An Overview of Reviews

ABSTRACT Objectives To assess and synthesize the effect size and quality of the literature on the placebo and nocebo effects on motor performance and motor‐related perceptive responses. Design Umbrella review. Data sources Medline, Embase, Lilacs, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews for peer‐rev...

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Main Authors: Cayque Brietzke, Wesley Alves Ribeiro, Paulo Estevão Franco‐Alvarenga, Raul Canestri, Ìtalo Vínicius, Gustavo Vasconcelos, Julio Cesario, Nelson Carvas Junior, Vitor de Salles Painelli, Flávio Oliveira Pires
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2025-06-01
Series:Brain and Behavior
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1002/brb3.70534
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author Cayque Brietzke
Wesley Alves Ribeiro
Paulo Estevão Franco‐Alvarenga
Raul Canestri
Ìtalo Vínicius
Gustavo Vasconcelos
Julio Cesario
Nelson Carvas Junior
Vitor de Salles Painelli
Flávio Oliveira Pires
author_facet Cayque Brietzke
Wesley Alves Ribeiro
Paulo Estevão Franco‐Alvarenga
Raul Canestri
Ìtalo Vínicius
Gustavo Vasconcelos
Julio Cesario
Nelson Carvas Junior
Vitor de Salles Painelli
Flávio Oliveira Pires
author_sort Cayque Brietzke
collection DOAJ
description ABSTRACT Objectives To assess and synthesize the effect size and quality of the literature on the placebo and nocebo effects on motor performance and motor‐related perceptive responses. Design Umbrella review. Data sources Medline, Embase, Lilacs, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews for peer‐reviewed literature, PROSPERO for protocols, and the Open Access Theses and Dissertations for gray literature. Eligibility criteria for selecting studies Population—human participants with varied health conditions; intervention: placebo; control: no treatment or active intervention; outcome: motor performance (primary) and perceptual variables (secondary); study design—ystematic reviews with or without meta‐analysis. Results In total, 3432 records were gathered from searches, resulting in 13 eligible reviews after screening. These reviews encompassed 247 original studies, with 221 focusing on the placebo effect and 26 on the nocebo effect. Among all eligible systematic reviews, five conducted meta‐analysis with 5036 participants, and one provided a summary of effect sizes reported by the original studies with 1215 participants. The reviews reported small to large effects of placebo (SMD = 0.09–0.93) and nocebo (SMD = 0.37–1.20), and only two conducted the GRADE assessment. Conclusion We found varied placebo and nocebo effects on motor performance, likely due to the poor quality of the methodology used by most reviews, highlighting the need for well‐conducted systematic reviews on the placebo and nocebo phenomena.
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spelling doaj-art-e5cf8519e68b4de6ad8a6f2630c27baa2025-08-20T03:02:45ZengWileyBrain and Behavior2162-32792025-06-01156n/an/a10.1002/brb3.70534Placebo and Nocebo Effects in Motor Performance: An Overview of ReviewsCayque Brietzke0Wesley Alves Ribeiro1Paulo Estevão Franco‐Alvarenga2Raul Canestri3Ìtalo Vínicius4Gustavo Vasconcelos5Julio Cesario6Nelson Carvas Junior7Vitor de Salles Painelli8Flávio Oliveira Pires9Exercise Psychophysiology Research Group. School of Arts Sciences and Humanities–University of São Paulo São Paulo BrazilExercise Psychophysiology Research Group. School of Arts Sciences and Humanities–University of São Paulo São Paulo BrazilExercise Psychophysiology Research Group. School of Arts Sciences and Humanities–University of São Paulo São Paulo BrazilExercise Psychophysiology Research Group. School of Arts Sciences and Humanities–University of São Paulo São Paulo BrazilExercise Psychophysiology Research Group. School of Arts Sciences and Humanities–University of São Paulo São Paulo BrazilExercise Psychophysiology Research Group. School of Arts Sciences and Humanities–University of São Paulo São Paulo BrazilExercise Psychophysiology Research Group. School of Arts Sciences and Humanities–University of São Paulo São Paulo BrazilPaulista UniversityExercise Psychophysiology Research Group. School of Arts Sciences and Humanities–University of São Paulo São Paulo BrazilExercise Psychophysiology Research Group. School of Arts Sciences and Humanities–University of São Paulo São Paulo BrazilABSTRACT Objectives To assess and synthesize the effect size and quality of the literature on the placebo and nocebo effects on motor performance and motor‐related perceptive responses. Design Umbrella review. Data sources Medline, Embase, Lilacs, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews for peer‐reviewed literature, PROSPERO for protocols, and the Open Access Theses and Dissertations for gray literature. Eligibility criteria for selecting studies Population—human participants with varied health conditions; intervention: placebo; control: no treatment or active intervention; outcome: motor performance (primary) and perceptual variables (secondary); study design—ystematic reviews with or without meta‐analysis. Results In total, 3432 records were gathered from searches, resulting in 13 eligible reviews after screening. These reviews encompassed 247 original studies, with 221 focusing on the placebo effect and 26 on the nocebo effect. Among all eligible systematic reviews, five conducted meta‐analysis with 5036 participants, and one provided a summary of effect sizes reported by the original studies with 1215 participants. The reviews reported small to large effects of placebo (SMD = 0.09–0.93) and nocebo (SMD = 0.37–1.20), and only two conducted the GRADE assessment. Conclusion We found varied placebo and nocebo effects on motor performance, likely due to the poor quality of the methodology used by most reviews, highlighting the need for well‐conducted systematic reviews on the placebo and nocebo phenomena.https://doi.org/10.1002/brb3.70534adverse effectsmeta‐analysisnoceboplacebopsychomotor performanceresearch synthesis
spellingShingle Cayque Brietzke
Wesley Alves Ribeiro
Paulo Estevão Franco‐Alvarenga
Raul Canestri
Ìtalo Vínicius
Gustavo Vasconcelos
Julio Cesario
Nelson Carvas Junior
Vitor de Salles Painelli
Flávio Oliveira Pires
Placebo and Nocebo Effects in Motor Performance: An Overview of Reviews
Brain and Behavior
adverse effects
meta‐analysis
nocebo
placebo
psychomotor performance
research synthesis
title Placebo and Nocebo Effects in Motor Performance: An Overview of Reviews
title_full Placebo and Nocebo Effects in Motor Performance: An Overview of Reviews
title_fullStr Placebo and Nocebo Effects in Motor Performance: An Overview of Reviews
title_full_unstemmed Placebo and Nocebo Effects in Motor Performance: An Overview of Reviews
title_short Placebo and Nocebo Effects in Motor Performance: An Overview of Reviews
title_sort placebo and nocebo effects in motor performance an overview of reviews
topic adverse effects
meta‐analysis
nocebo
placebo
psychomotor performance
research synthesis
url https://doi.org/10.1002/brb3.70534
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