Highlights•Early tactile experiences are the most direct experience of contact with the
surrounding physical and social environment.•Affective touch interactions may promote …

Some of the principles of the representation of affective touch in the brain are described.
Positively affective touch and temperature are represented in parts of the orbitofrontal and …

Introduction Touch is important for individuals' subjective well-being, is typically rewarding,
and is one of few sensory stimuli which are experienced as pleasant for a rather long time …

Social touch plays a powerful role in human life, with important physical and mental health
benefits in development and adulthood. Touch is central in building the foundations of social …

Surprisingly little scientific research has been conducted on the topic of interpersonal touch
over the years, despite the importance of touch in our everyday social interactions from birth …

Remember “Mr. Whipple… Please don't squeeze the Charmin!”? And how often when
shopping do you hear parents telling their children “Please don't touch!”? Touch can be an …

The rewarding sensation of touch in affiliative interactions is hypothesized to be
underpinned by a specialized system of nerve fibers called C-Tactile afferents (CTs), which …

Small everyday gestures such as a tap on the shoulder can affect the way humans feel and
act. Touch can have a calming effect and alter the way stress is handled, thereby promoting …

Couples often communicate their emotions, eg, love or sadness, through physical
expressions of touch. Prior efforts have used visual observation to distinguish emotional …

Brain imaging studies in humans have shown the existence of a shared somatosensory
representation in the primary somatosensory cortex (S1), putatively involved in …