title: Life events, anxiety, social support, personality, and alexithymia in female patients with chronic pain: A path analysis.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  This study sought to identify a model that explains the relationship between psychosocial factors and chronic pain in female patients, and to explore all of these constructs in a single study and provide a more holistic examination of the overall psychosocial factors that female patients with chronic pain encounter.
  
  
  METHODS
  Female patients with chronic pain (n = 147), aged 20-65 (M = 34.9 years, SD = 11.25), from an outpatient pain clinic completed a cross-sectional self-report questionnaire on anxiety, life events, personality, social support, and alexithymia. Data were analyzed by means of path analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The direct effect of anxiety on female patients with chronic pain was greatest among all the paths. Personality and alexithymia led to chronic pain in female patients only indirectly, mediated by life events. The personality factors of neuroticism and extraversion were associated positively with social support, which had an indirect effect on the influence of life events on chronic pain. However, alexithymia was associated negatively with social support, which had an indirect effect on the influence of life events on chronic pain.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our findings provide evidence that life events are a mediator in the relationship between personality, social support, alexithymia, and chronic pain in female patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan, China.
authors.forename: Fanmin
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Zeng
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan, China.
authors.forename: Xueli
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.affiliation: Department of Pain Management, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan, China.
authors.forename: Bangxiang
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Suzhou Psychiatry Hospital, Suzhou, China.
authors.forename: Xiaoqian
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Fu
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000342:Affective Symptoms / Q000523:psychology*; D001007:Anxiety / Q000523:psychology*; D059350:Chronic Pain / Q000523:psychology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008016:Life Change Events; D008875:Middle Aged; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D010551:Personality; D012944:Social Support; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: chronic pain in a female patient; path analysis; psychosocial factor