Psychometric methods for measuring pain

Abstract

Pain is a complex, multidimensional construct that includes a number of domains, such as pain severity, sensory qualities of pain, pain beliefs, coping strategies, and the functional impact of pain. In addition a variety of psychosocial factors, including affective state, the subjectivity of pain, and the degree to which one uses pain complaints to communicate about other psychosocial problems, strongly influence people's report of pain and disability. Thus it is important to recognize the various dimensions that contribute to the construct of pain and to consider evaluation methods that accurately provide for assessment of each of these dimensions. In some cases this would require administration of several domain-specific measures. Alternatively use of multidimensional measures is a viable option that often provides for more comprehensive evaluation. This chapter reviews a number of pain-related assessment measures, the constructs they purport to measure, and then briefly addresses issues related to normative data and symptom validity for each.