Study to Understand Pain Experiences in Relationships
Abstract
Chronic pain is a highly prevalent and costly health care problem. Yet, little is known about the optimal ways for health care providers and family members to respond to the distress expressed by people with chronic pain. The aim of the current study is to compare two models of responsiveness to identify responses that result in better functioning and adjustment. An experimental design will be used to test the extent to which emotional validation (e.g., an empathic response to distress) increases or decreases pain behaviors during physical activity. Romantic partners of individuals with chronic pain will be randomly assigned to receive validation or control training. Following training, people with chronic pain and their partners will engage in a discussion about pain and complete household tasks to examine the effects of partner training on communication, pain intensity, and pain behavior. Additionally, each individual in the couple will complete self-report measures after the discussion, after the household tasks, and one-month following the laboratory visit.
Conditions: Chronic Pain.
Primary outcome: Pain Behavior (Behavioral coding); Pain Intensity (0 - 10 self-report rating scale); Pain Intensity (0 - 10 self-report rating scale); Number of Partner Validating Responses (Behavioral coding); Number of Partner Invalidating Responses (Behavioral coding); Pain-Related Emotional Disclosures (Behavioral coding); Number of Partner Validating Responses (Behavioral coding);…
How strong is the evidence?
Evidence Hub reads this as a randomized trial, done in people. Its evidence level is 2 of 5 (High · randomized trial). Randomized trials of a reasonable size are the strongest single-study design. Reported size: 80 participants or records.
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