Tylenol Makes People More Lenient Towards Wrongdoing

Posted by Milton Recht:

From Association for Psychological Science, Press Release, "Experiencing Existential Dread? Tylenol May Do the Trick:"

All the participants were then asked to read an arrest report about a prostitute, and to set the amount for bail.

Just as expected, the control group that wrote about dental pain — who weren’t made to feel an existentialist threat — gave relatively low bail amounts, only about $300. They didn’t feel the need to assert their values.

On the other hand, the participants who wrote about their own death and were given a sugar pill gave over $500 $400 for bail [APS updated their original press release and lowered the amount] ....

But, the participants in this group who took Tylenol were not nearly as harsh in setting bail. These results suggest that their existential suffering was ‘treated’ by the headache drug.

A second study confirmed these results using video clips. People who watched a surreal video by director David Lynch and took the sugar pill judged a group of rioters following a hockey game most harshly, while those who watched the video and took Tylenol were more lenient.

If I were a trial lawyer, I would like to know whether the judges and jurors for my pending case took Tylenol and would view my client less harshly. Also, I would look at the witnesses and whether leniency increases their credibility to the jurors and the judge, such as a witness with a criminal background.

While this study was limited to Tylenol brand painkiller, the results most likely also apply to the generic form acetaminophen. The results may possibly apply to other painkillers, such as aspirin and ibuprofen, but that conclusion awaits further study.



All the participants were then asked to read an arrest report about a prostitute, and to set the amount for bail.

Just as expected, the control group that wrote about dental pain — who weren’t made to feel an existentialist threat — gave relatively low bail amounts, only about $300. They didn’t feel the need to assert their values.

On the other hand, the participants who wrote about their own death and were given a sugar pill gave over $400 for bail, in line with previous studies. They responded to the threat on life’s meaning and order by affirming their basic values, perhaps as a coping mechanism.

But, the participants in this group who took Tylenol were not nearly as harsh in setting bail. These results suggest that their existential suffering was ‘treated’ by the headache drug.

A second study confirmed these results using video clips. People who watched a surreal video by director David Lynch and took the sugar pill judged a group of rioters following a hockey game most harshly, while those who watched the video and took Tylenol were more lenient.