Adolescents' Observations of Parent Pain Behaviors: Preliminary Measure Validation and Test of Social Learning Theory in Pediatric Chronic Pain.
Evaluate psychometric properties of a measure of adolescents’ observations of parental pain behaviors and use this measure to test hypotheses regarding pain-specific social learning.



We created a proxy-report of the Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) Pain Behavior–Short Form (PPB) for adolescents to report on parental pain behaviors, which we labeled the PPB-Proxy. Adolescents (n = 138, mean age = 14.20) with functional abdominal pain completed the PPB-Proxy and a parent completed the PPB. Adolescents and their parents completed measures of pain and disability during the adolescent’s clinic visit for abdominal pain. Adolescents subsequently completed a 7-day pain diary period.



The PPB-Proxy moderately correlated with the PPB, evidencing that adolescents observe and can report on parental pain behaviors. Both the PPB-Proxy and PPB significantly correlated with adolescents’ pain-related disability.



Parental modeling of pain behaviors could represent an important target for assessment and treatment in pediatric chronic pain patients.
Department of Psychology and Human Development, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.
Amanda L
AL
Stone
Department of Pediatrics, Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt University, TN, USA.
Lynn S
LS
Walker
D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D059350:Chronic Pain / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D055809:Illness Behavior; D008297:Male; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology; D011594:Psychometrics; D000067570:Social Learning
adolescents; assessment; gastroenterology; parents; parent illness; pain; chronic and recurrent pain