Mathijs Franssen
Papers
5
Total Citations
127
H-Index
4
About
Mathijs Franssen investigates the psychological mechanisms underlying chronic pain, with a particular focus on how learned avoidance behaviors contribute to the transition from acute to persistent pain. His major contribution lies in developing ecologically valid experimental paradigms—most notably, a robotic arm-reaching task that captures real-time, overt avoidance behavior rather than relying solely on self-report or physiological measures. This innovative approach has allowed Franssen to demonstrate how individuals acquire and generalize pain-related avoidance in response to contextual cues, shedding light on the associative learning processes that maintain disability. His most cited work, "Acquisition and extinction of operant pain-related avoidance behavior using a 3 degrees-of-freedom robotic arm" (2016, 92 citations), provides compelling empirical evidence for the role of operant conditioning in pain-related fear and avoidance. Through studies on contextual generalization and Pavlovian cue impact, Franssen has advanced our understanding of how subtle environmental signals can drive maladaptive avoidance, offering critical insights for developing more targeted interventions in chronic pain treatment.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
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- 4The impact of Pavlovian cues on pain avoidance: A behavioral study9 citations · 2016
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