Adjustment to chronic pain: The role of pain acceptance, coping strategies, and pain-related cognitions
Abstract
Background Previous research has found that acceptance of pain is more successful than coping variables in predicting adjustment to pain. Purpose To compare the influence of acceptance, pain-related cognitions and coping in adjustment to chronic pain. Methods One hundred seventeen chronic pain patients attending the Clinical Pain Unit were administered a battery of questionnaires assessing pain acceptance, active and passive coping, pain-related cognitions, and adjustment. Results The influence of acceptance, coping, and cognition on all the adjustment variables was considered simultaneously via Structural Equation Modeling using LISREL 8.30 software. A multigroup analysis showed that the male and female samples did not significantly differ regarding path coefficients. The final model showed that acceptance of pain determined functional status and functional impairment. However, coping measures had a significant influence on measures of emotional distress. Catastrophizing self-statements significantly influenced reported pain intensity and anxiety; resourcefulness beliefs had a negative and significant influence on depression. Conclusions These findings suggest that acceptance may play a critical role in the maintenance of functioning and, with this aim, acceptance-based treatments are promising to avoid the development of disability. They also lend support to the role of control beliefs and of active coping to maintain a positive mood. Acceptance and coping are presented as…
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Given the negative relationship between acceptance and negative affect, people who accept and face painful sensations process and regulate emotions better, thus achieving a beneficial effect over the functional disability caused by the illness.
“In addition, given the negative relationship between acceptance and negative affect, it may be that people who accept and face painful sensations process and regulate emotions better, thus achieving a beneficial effect over the functional disability caused by the illness itself (40, 41).”
From Identifying mindfulness and acceptance as mediators between negative affect, functional disability and emotional distress in patients with fibromyalgia (2021) · cites this paper as [40]
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- Authors
- Esteve, R., Ramírez-Maestre, C., & López-Martínez, A. E.
- Affiliations
- Universidad de Málaga (ES)
- Corresponding author
- Esteve, Rosa
- Venue
- Annals of Behavioral Medicine
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press (OUP)
- Published
- 2007-06
- Volume
- 33
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 179-188
- ISSN
- 0742-5554 (ISSN-L)
- 0883-6612
- 1532-4796
- OpenAlex
- W2024998098
- Cited by
- 226
- References
- 21
- Citations by year
- 2026: 8 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 11 · 2023: 13 · 2022: 16 · 2021: 14 · 2020: 18 · 2019: 7 · 2018: 13 · 2017: 14 · 2016: 14 · 2015: 10 · 2014: 11 · 2013: 11 · 2012: 10
- FWCI
- 7.71
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Annals of Behavioral Medicine (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Pharmacology › Musculoskeletal pain and rehabilitation
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Mindfulness and Compassion Interventions
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Pediatrics, Perinatology and Child Health › Pediatric Pain Management Techniques
- Keywords
- chronic pain, pain acceptance, coping strategies, pain-related cognitions, catastrophizing, control beliefs, functional status, functional disability, emotional distress, anxiety, depression, pain intensity, gender differences
- MeSH terms
- Activities of Daily Living, Adaptation, Psychological, Adult, Aged, Anxiety, Behavior Therapy, Chronic Disease, Culture, Depression, Female, Helplessness, Learned, Humans, Internal-External Control, Male, Mathematical Computing, Middle Aged, Pain, Personality Inventory, Psychometrics, Sex Factors, Sick Role, Software, Models, Statistical
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