Highlights
- •Attention control moderates the effect of pain catastrophizing on pain memory bias.
- •Attention control is not a unitary construct.
- •A minority of youth with chronic pain develops negatively biased pain memories.
- •Attention shifting buffers the effect of pain catastrophizing on memory bias.
Abstract
The present study examined the role of attention control in understanding the development
of negatively-biased pain memories as well as its moderating role in the relationship
between pain catastrophizing and negatively-biased pain memories. Youth with chronic
pain (N = 105) performed a cold pressor task (CPT) and completed self-report measures
of state/trait pain catastrophizing and attention control, with the latter comprising
both attention focusing and attention shifting. Two weeks after the CPT, youth's pain-related
memories were elicited via telephone allowing to compute pain and anxiety memory bias
indices (ie, recalling pain intensity or pain-related anxiety, respectively, as higher
than initially reported). Results indicated no main effects of attention control and
pain catastrophizing on pain memories. However, both components of attention control
(ie, attention focusing and attention shifting) moderated the impact of pain catastrophizing
on youth's memory bias, with opposite interaction effects. Specifically, whereas high
levels of attention shifting buffered the influence of high pain catastrophizing on
the development of pain memory bias, high levels of attention focusing strengthened
the influence of high pain catastrophizing on the development of anxiety memory bias.
Interaction effects were confined to trait catastrophizing (ie, not state catastrophizing).
Theoretical and clinical implications are discussed.
Perspective
This article investigates the role of attention control in the development of negatively-biased
pain memories in children with chronic pain. Findings underscore the importance of
targeting differential components of attention control and can inform intervention
efforts to minimize the development of negatively biased pain memories in youth with
chronic pain.
Key words
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: May 10, 2021
Accepted:
April 9,
2021
Received in revised form:
April 7,
2021
Received:
January 7,
2021
Footnotes
Disclosures:
Funding: This research was supported by funding awarded to Dr. Noel by the Vi Riddell Pediatric Pain Initiative (RSO #1036777), the Alberta Children's Hospital Foundation and Research Institute (Shaikh Award; RSO #1042861), and funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research Strategy for Patient Oriented Research ‘Chronic Pain Network’ (RSO #1041605).
Conflicts of Interest Statement: There are no conflicts of interest that may arise as a result of the research presented in this article.
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© 2021 by United States Association for the Study of Pain, Inc.
