Initial development and validation of a multidimensional pain readiness to change questionnaire

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Rehabilitation Medicine
• Pain Management

Background:

• Assessing patient readiness for pain management skills is crucial for understanding treatment responses.
• Existing tools lack specificity, focusing on general self-management rather than specific coping strategies.
• Multidisciplinary pain programs teach various adaptive and avoidant pain coping strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and evaluate the Multidimensional Pain Readiness to Change Questionnaire (MPRCQ).
• To measure readiness to adopt specific adaptive and avoid maladaptive pain coping strategies.
• To assess the psychometric properties of the MPRCQ in chronic pain populations.

Main Methods:

• Initial development and administration of the MPRCQ to patients with fibromyalgia syndrome (n=93).
• Replication study with individuals experiencing chronic pain due to acquired amputations or spinal cord injuries (n=88).
• Evaluation of the instrument's reliability and validity.

Main Results:

• The MPRCQ demonstrated preliminary support for its reliability and validity in both study samples.
• The questionnaire successfully measured readiness to adopt specific pain coping strategies.
• Initial findings suggest the MPRCQ can differentiate readiness for various pain management skills.

Conclusions:

• The MPRCQ is a promising new instrument for assessing readiness to change pain coping strategies.
• Further research is warranted to establish the construct validity and clinical utility of the MPRCQ.
• This tool has the potential to enhance personalized pain management interventions.