Highlights
- •Perfectionism in youth and parents is linked to pediatric pain and somatization.
- •Socially prescribed perfectionism arose as most salient.
- •Fear of pain mediates relations between perfectionism and pain-related dysfunction.
Abstract
Despite clinical observation of perfectionistic tendencies among youth with chronic
pain and their parents as well as established relationships between perfectionism
and functional somatic symptoms in adults and youth, no research in the pediatric
pain literature has examined perfectionism. This study explored the role of various
types of youth and parent perfectionism on youth and parent pain-related distress
and behavior and youth pain-related dysfunction. At admission, 239 parent–child pairs
from outpatient and day-treatment rehabilitation settings completed several questionnaires
assessing perfectionism, pain-related distress, and pain-related dysfunction. Bivariate
correlations indicated that socially prescribed perfectionism in youth and parents
was linked to youth pain duration, parent and youth pain-related distress and behavior,
and youth somatization. Indirect relations showed that youth socially prescribed perfectionism
was the only form of perfectionism directly associated with youth somatization whereas
all forms of youth perfectionism were indirectly associated with somatization and
functional disability through increases in youth pain-related fear and catastrophizing.
Additionally, socially prescribed perfectionism was the only type of parent perfectionism
linked to youth pain-related dysfunction (somatization, functional disability) through
its association with youth pain-related fear. Findings support clinical observations
that parent and youth perfectionism is a psychosocial factor that should be targeted
in pediatric chronic pain treatment.
Perspective
Perfectionism in youth with chronic pain and their parents was indirectly linked to
youth pain-related dysfunction through its effect on youth pain-related catastrophizing
and fear. Findings support clinical observations that parent and youth perfectionism
is a psychosocial factor that should be targeted in pediatric chronic pain treatment.
Key words
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: December 14, 2017
Accepted:
November 28,
2017
Received in revised form:
November 1,
2017
Received:
June 21,
2017
Footnotes
The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.
Identification
Copyright
© 2017 by the American Pain Society
