[Dimensions of coping with chronic pain--a replication study]

Clinical-psychological research on pain conceptualizes pain as a transactional process. There, important components are pain-experience, pain control (coping with pain) and subjectively felt pain-related stress. The intent of one preceding study (Geissner, 1991) was to describe, analyze, and validate behavioral and cognitive aspects of pain control and emotional and behavioral aspects of pain-related subjective stress. The purpose of the present study is to replicate the factors of pain-processing, gained by exploratory data-analyses. 162 patients with headache, back pain and joint pain answered the revised version of the set of questionnaires used in the former study. Analyses are done by means of confirmatory factor analysis (LISREL 7 by Jöreskog & Sörbom) and with admission of steps to optimize a solution found. 3 Dimensions of more behavioral aspects of pain control are identified: Mental distraction, relaxation and counteractivities. Also, 3 dimensions of cognitive aspects of pain control are found: Cognitive restructuring, planning skills to deal with the pain, and self-assurance of ones own skills. The dimensions of subjectively felt pain-related stress are (1) helplessness/depression, (2) anxiety, and (3) anger. All dimensions prove to be factorially homogenous and structurally distinct. In regard to the solution found in the preceding study, differences are small. Therefore, it can be said, that the results gained formerly are replicable. Findings from correlational and regression-analytic studies further support the validity of the dimensions of pain-processing.