Positive Psychology for Chronic Pain Self-management

Experimental: Intervention group

Participants will engage in a 7-week positive psychology-based chronic pain self-management program.

Verhalten: Positive STEPS

Individuals in the intervention group will meet with a community health worker at an in-person or virtual study orientation session. At this session, they will be introduced to the program, learn how to use the online modules and any associated materials, and choose a day and time for future weekly telephone sessions. Participants will also be given a wearable physical activity tracker at the orientation session to use throughout the course of the program. They can choose to report daily step counts either by automatically syncing to an app or by manual reporting via text message. The program will be delivered over 6 weeks. Each week participants will complete a web-based module and have one telephone session with the community health worker to discuss that module and to set a related goal. Participants will also set weekly goals related to walking, which will be informed and tracked by daily step-counts from the physical activity tracker.

Kein Eingriff: Usual care control group

After completing the follow-up telephone survey, individuals in the control condition will be given access to the online program, a wearable physical activity tracker to use and keep, and will be invited to attend a one-time 2.5-hour in-person or telephone workshop that summarizes intervention content and that will be led jointly by study staff and a community health worker.

Change in Pain Interference

The Pain Interference 6-item subscale of the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS)-43 Adult Profile. Items ask how much pain in the last 7 days has interfered with daily activities such as household chores and social activities (1=not at all to 5=very much); raw total scale scores range from 6 (low interference) to 30 (high interference). When converted to T-scores (normed such that a score of 50 is the population mean and 10 T-score points=1 standard deviation), the possible range is 42 to 76, with a higher score representing worse outcome.

Change in Self-reported Physical Functioning

The Physical Functioning 4-item subscale of the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS)-29 Adult Profile. Items ask how much difficulty participant has in doing daily activities such as household chores, using stairs, and walking 15 minutes (1=without any difficulty to 5=unable to do); raw total scale scores range from 4 (high functioning) to 20 (low functioning). When converted to T-scores (normed such that a score of 50 is the population mean and 10 T-score points=1 standard deviation), the possible range is 23 to 57, with a higher score representing worse outcome.

Participant Global Impression of Change--Pain

How participant thinks their pain has changed from baseline (much worse (1) to much better (7)). Higher score represents a better outcome.

Change in Pain Self-efficacy

The Pain Self-Efficacy Questionnaire, a 10-item scale (Nicholas 1989) rating confidence at doing specific things (e.g., chores, accomplishing goals, becoming more active) despite pain; each item scored from 0=not at all confident to 6=completely confident.

Change in Social Participation

Ability to Participate in Social Roles and Activities, a 4-item subscale from PROMIS-20 rating the amount of trouble (1=not at all to 5=very much) in participating in social roles such as family activities, leisure activities, and work. Raw total scale scores range from 4 (high functioning) to 20 (low functioning). When converted to T-scores (normed such that a score of 50 is the population mean and 10 T-score points=1 standard deviation), the possible range is 29 to 64, with a higher score representing worse outcome.

Change in Resilience

10-item version of the Connor-Davidson resilience scale rating the degree (0=not true at all to 4=true nearly all the time) respondent can cope/be resilient in various situations. Higher score means more resilience.

Participant Global Impression of Change - Functioning

How participant thinks their functioning has changed from baseline (much worse (1) to much better (7)). Higher score represents a better outcome.