Pain Locus of control scale: adaption and reliability for elderly

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Pain Management
• Psychometrics

Background:

• Pain is a common, multidimensional experience in the elderly.
• Pain locus of control influences elderly individuals' health behaviors and treatment adherence.
• Validated assessment tools are crucial for health professionals working with elderly patients.

Purpose of the Study:

• To perform the cross-cultural adaptation of the Pain Locus of Control Scale for Brazil.
• To evaluate the intra- and inter-examiner reliability of the adapted scale in elderly individuals with non-oncological pain.

Main Methods:

• Cross-cultural adaptation followed the Beaton et al. (2000) methodology.
• Pearson's correlation coefficient (PCC) and Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC) were used for reliability analysis.
• The study included 68 community-dwelling elderly individuals with non-oncological pain.

Main Results:

• The sample comprised elderly individuals (average age 69.6 years), predominantly women with lower income and education.
• Osteoarthritis was the main diagnosis, with an average pain duration of 10.2 years.
• Adequate reliability was found, with PCC ranging from 0.60 to 0.93 and ICC from 0.60 to 0.93, particularly for chance and professional control subscales.

Conclusions:

• The adapted Pain Locus of Control Scale shows adequate reliability and applicability for use with elderly populations in Brazil.
• The scale can be a valuable tool for understanding pain perception and influencing health behaviors in older adults.
• Further research may explore its utility in diverse clinical settings and pain conditions.