title: Repression predicts outcome following multidisciplinary treatment of chronic pain.
abstract: This study examined whether repression predicts outcome following multidisciplinary treatment for chronic pain and whether links between anxiety and outcome are obscured by repressors. Ninety-three chronic pain patients completed a 4-week pain program. Lifting capacity, walking endurance, depression, pain severity, and activity were measured at pre- and posttreatment. Low-anxious, repressor, high-anxious, and defensive/high-anxious groups were formed from median splits of Anxiety Content (ACS) and Lie scales of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 (MMPI-2; Butcher, Dahlstrom, Graham, Tellegen, & Kaemmer, 1989). Significant ACS x Lie interactions were found for lifting capacity, depression, and pain severity changes. Planned comparisons showed that both repressors and high-anxious patients performed poorly on lifting capacity; repressors alone recovered poorly on depression and pain severity. Results imply that repression may interfere with the process and outcome of pain programs.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Finch University of Health Sciences, Chicago Medical School, North Chicago, Illinois 60064, USA. burnsj@finchcms.edu
authors.forename: J W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Burns
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001007:Anxiety / Q000523:psychology; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003863:Depression / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010146:Pain / Q000523:psychology*; D059408:Pain Management; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011379:Prognosis; D012094:Repression, Psychology; D016896:Treatment Outcome