Frédérick Dionne

The Mediating Role of Pain Acceptance in the Relation Between Perceived Injustice and Chronic Pain Outcomes in a Community Sample.

Objective: Perceived injustice has been defined as an appraisal regarding the severity and irreparability of loss associated with pain, blame, and a sense of unfairness. Recent findings suggest that perceived injustice is an important risk factor for elevated disability associated with chronic pain. However, the mechanisms by which this perception leads to disability are not well understood. Therefore, the current study aimed to examine the mediating role of pain acceptance on the relation between perceived injustice and chronic pain outcomes (pain intensity, pain-related disability, and psychological distress). Method: This cross-sectional study used a sample of 475 individuals from the community who report chronic pain. Participants completed the Injustice Experience Questionnaire, the Chronic Pain Acceptance Questionnaire, a pain rating intensity scale, the Modified Brief Pain Inventory, and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. Results: Results revealed significant direct links from perceived injustice to pain intensity (c′=0.416, P<0.001), disability (c′=0.891, P<0.001), and distress (c′=0.261, P<0.001), as well as indirect links from perceived injustice through acceptance of pain to pain disability (ab=0.512, P<0.001, confidence interval, 0.390-0.635) and psychological distress (ab=0.106, P<0.001, confidence interval, 0.077-0.136). Discussion: Clinical and theoretical implications are discussed along with future research directions.

Perceived Injustice and Chronic Pain Acceptance: Are We Measuring Two Separate Constructs or Opposite Poles of the Same Dimension?

Perceived injustice has recently emerged as an important construct in the chronic pain literature. Perceived injustice has been shown to be a risk factor for various problematic pain outcomes, such as increased pain severity, depressive symptoms, and pain-related disability. At present, research on perceived injustice in chronic pain is lacking a theoretical model to facilitate understanding of its influence on chronic pain outcomes. It has been suggested that it might be useful to conceptualize perceived injustice within the psychological flexibility model of chronic pain.Indeed, there is preliminary evidencethatperceived injustice is negatively related to chronic pain acceptance, which is an important process within this model; however, the nature of this association is uncertain at present. In particular, it is unclear whether current measures of perceived injustice and chronic acceptance simplyreflect different poles of the same dimension, or theoretically separate, but related, constructs. This study aims to further examine the relation between perceived injustice and pain acceptance. The sample consisted of 847adults who suffer from chronic pain. Several competing measurement models were tested by means of confirmatory factor analysis. Results indicate that these two constructs appear to be two closely related constructs rather than two opposite poles of the same dimension. Implications of these findings for future research will be discussed.

Pilot study of a Web-based acceptance and commitment therapy intervention for university students to reduce academic procrastination

Abstract Objective: This pilot study pursued two aims. The first was to investigate the feasibility and acceptability of a Web-based acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) intervention to reduce academic procrastination among university students. The second aim was to test the effectiveness of the intervention on procrastination and committed actions. Participants: The sample was comprised of Canadian university students (n = 36) that participated in the intervention between September 2016 and April 2017. Methods: The study relied on a prepost research design. Results: The intervention appears feasible, acceptable, and valuable to students. A significant reduction in procrastination and a significant improvement in committed actions were found between pre and postintervention. The effect sizes for these results were medium. Conclusions: Results provide preliminary support for the feasibility and effectiveness of a Web-based ACT intervention for academic procrastination. Results also highlight some aspects that need to be improved for further development.