Study to Understand Pain Experiences in Relationships

Completed · Not applicable

Conditions studied: Chronic Pain

In brief

Chronic pain is a highly prevalent and costly health care problem. Yet, little is known about the optimal ways for health care providers and family members to respond to the distress expressed by people with chronic pain. The aim of the current study is to compare two models of responsiveness to identify responses that result in better functioning and adjustment. An experimental design will be used to test the extent to which emotional validation (e.g., an empathic response to distress) increases or decreases pain behaviors during physical activity. Romantic partners of individuals with chronic pain will be randomly assigned to receive validation or control training. Following training, people with chronic pain and their partners will engage in a discussion about pain and complete household tasks to examine the effects of partner training on communication, pain intensity, and pain behavior. Additionally, each individual in the couple will complete self-report measures after the discussion, after the household tasks, and one-month following the laboratory visit.

Key facts

Study ID

NCT02859545

Run by

Wayne State University

People needed

80

Starts

2016-07-01

Expected to finish

2018-06-01

Last updated by the study team

2019-04-23

Who can join

Age: 18 and older. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: not accepted.

You may qualify if…

• Romantic couples who are married or living with each other for 6 months or longer or have been in a romantic relationship 2+ years.
• One individual in the couple must have chronic muscoskeletal pain, lasting 3 months or longer. Participants may have multiple pain sites.
• The individual with chronic pain must report that their pain occurs nearly daily.
• The individual with chronic pain must have an average pain intensity of 3 or greater on an 11-point scale (from 0: no pain to 10: worst pain imaginable)
• The individual with chronic pain must have an average pain interference of 3 or greater on an 11-point scale (from 0: does not interfere to 10: completely interferes)

You may not qualify if…

• One or both individuals in the couple are unable to speak, read, or write in English.
• Both individuals in the couple have chronic pain. Couples may consist of one individual with chronic pain and one individual with "minimal pain", which we define as having some aspects of chronic pain but not all (e.g., has had nearly daily pain for 4 months but rates their pain below 3 in regards to interference and intensity)
• One or both individuals in the couple have widespread pain (e.g., fibromyalgia)

Where it is running

• Wayne State University's Relationships and Health Lab — Detroit, Michigan, United States

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

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