Don't judge a book by its cover: Exploring low self-reported distress and repressive coping in a pediatric chronic...

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Pediatrics
• Pain Management

Background:

• Repression is associated with increased illness and somatic symptoms in adults and children.
• Children with chronic pain may under-report psychological distress during assessments.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the psychological and pain profiles of children with chronic pain, differentiating between repressors and true low-anxious individuals.
• To understand how repression influences self-reported distress, pain perception, and caregiver-reported adaptability in pediatric chronic pain.

Main Methods:

• Classified children with chronic pain into 'repressors' (low anxiety/high social desirability) and 'true low anxious' (low anxiety/low social desirability) groups based on self-report measures.
• Compared groups on psychopathology, pain intensity, pain unpleasantness, perfectionism, and clinician-rated disability.
• Collected caregiver reports on child adaptability.

Main Results:

• Repressors reported fewer depressive and somatic symptoms than true low-anxious children.
• Repressors reported higher pain intensity, pain unpleasantness, and self-oriented perfectionism.
• Caregivers rated repressors as more adaptable, though clinician-rated disability did not differ between groups.

Conclusions:

• Repressors exhibit distinct psychological and pain profiles compared to true low-anxious children with chronic pain.
• Repression is a significant factor influencing symptom reporting and perception in pediatric chronic pain.
• Considering repression is crucial for accurate assessment and effective treatment of children with chronic pain.