Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 19, 2026
09:00
Author Spotlight: Quantifying Pain Experience – An Illustrative Approach Using the Pain Body Diagram
Published on: July 7, 2023
4.4K
Metacognition, perseverative thinking, and pain catastrophizing: A moderated-mediation analysis
Robert Schütze1,2, Clare Rees1, Anne Smith2
1School of Psychology, Curtin University, Perth, Australia.
European Journal of Pain (London, England)
|September 9, 2019
Summary
Perseverative thinking mediates how pain intensity leads to pain catastrophizing. Unhelpful beliefs about thinking (metacognitions) amplify this link, suggesting new targets for chronic pain treatment.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Clinical Psychology
- Pain Management
Background:
- Pain catastrophizing is linked to poor health and treatment outcomes.
- Current treatments for pain catastrophizing offer modest benefits.
- Understanding the mechanisms of pain catastrophizing is crucial for developing effective interventions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore the role of perseverative thinking in pain catastrophizing.
- To investigate the influence of metacognitions on the relationship between pain intensity and pain catastrophizing.
- To inform theory-driven development of treatments for chronic pain.
Main Methods:
- A sample of 510 individuals with chronic pain completed self-report measures.
- Measures included pain intensity, disability, perseverative thinking, pain catastrophizing, depression, anxiety, and pain metacognition.
- Regression-based moderated mediation analysis was used to test the indirect effect of pain intensity on pain catastrophizing via perseverative thinking, moderated by metacognition.
Main Results:
- Perseverative thinking partially mediated the effect of pain intensity on pain catastrophizing (20% of the total effect).
- This indirect effect was stronger with higher levels of unhelpful positive and negative pain metacognitions.
- The indirect effect was not significant below the 50th percentile for positive metacognitions or the 60th percentile for negative metacognitions.
Conclusions:
- Unhelpful beliefs about thinking (metacognitions) amplify the impact of perseverative thinking on pain catastrophizing.
- Identifying and modifying these metacognitions may improve treatments for pain catastrophizing.
- Pain metacognitions represent potential new therapeutic targets for chronic pain management.
Related Concept Videos
09:00Quantifying Pain Location and Intensity with Multimodal Pain Body Diagrams
4.4K
Current pain scales used to quantify pain severity, such as visual analog scales, fail to capture the complexity of subjective pain experiences. Pain body diagrams are qualitative but may be more informative. The goal of this method is to extract quantitative metrics from pain body diagrams using novel pressure-hue...
4.4K
01:26Metacognition
735
Metacognition is a conscious process where individuals are aware of their cognitive and executive processes, such as planning before solving a problem or self-monitoring during reading. For instance, a writer may need help with composing a piece. The situation involves a writer who is working on a piece of writing, but while doing so, they realize that something is missing. They notice that their characters lack depth or details. This realization occurs because the writer is reflecting on their...
735
08:34Thinking Too Much Impairs Decision-Making
11.4K
Source: Peter Mende-Siedlecki & Jay Van Bavel—New York University
When we are considering a tough choice between two or more attractive options, we often end up actively weighing the pros and cons of each alternative. By reflecting on their advantages and disadvantages, we attempt to fit a complex, subjective decision into an orderly set of criteria. However, research in psychology suggests that this sort of introspective approach might not always yield the most optimal outcomes.1
In...
When we are considering a tough choice between two or more attractive options, we often end up actively weighing the pros and cons of each alternative. By reflecting on their advantages and disadvantages, we attempt to fit a complex, subjective decision into an orderly set of criteria. However, research in psychology suggests that this sort of introspective approach might not always yield the most optimal outcomes.1
In...
11.4K
12:55Multimodal Protocol for Assessing Metacognition and Self-Regulation in Adults with Learning Difficulties
9.0K
The current work proposes a multimodal evaluation protocol focused on metacognitive, self-regulation of learning, and emotional processes, which make up the basis of the difficulties in adults with...
9.0K
01:19Counterfactual Thinking
224
Counterfactual thinking is a cognitive process wherein individuals mentally reconstruct alternative versions of past events, often beginning with “what if” or “if only.” This reflective mechanism plays a significant role in shaping emotional experiences and guiding future behavior. Though typically triggered by unfavorable or unexpected outcomes, counterfactual thinking can also emerge in mundane, everyday decisions and experiences, revealing its deep entrenchment in...
224
08:31Effects of Thinking Abstractly or Concretely on Self-control
6.8K
Source: Diego Reinero & Jay Van Bavel—New York University
Whether it's refraining from having a second serving of ice cream, studying instead of attending a fun party, or deciding to put money away in a savings account, sacrificing short-term outcomes in favor of long-term outcomes (i.e., delaying gratification) is a central tenant of self-control. When people apply self control, they engage numerous psychological processes to help them achieve their goal. These self-regulatory...
Whether it's refraining from having a second serving of ice cream, studying instead of attending a fun party, or deciding to put money away in a savings account, sacrificing short-term outcomes in favor of long-term outcomes (i.e., delaying gratification) is a central tenant of self-control. When people apply self control, they engage numerous psychological processes to help them achieve their goal. These self-regulatory...
6.8K