| Abstract [eng] |
Chronic pain is one of the major problems of an ageing society and is associated with prejudices, some of which are beneficial and some hinder its effective management. The aim of this study was to determine the links between elderly chronic pain sufferers' attitudes towards pain, perceptions of their own ageing and subjective age. 137 people with chronic pain agreed to take part in the study, and a correlational study was conducted with 124 participants aged between 50 and 84 (M = 66.98, SD = 8.10) years, of whom 97 were women (78.2%) and 27 were men (21.8%). The participants were contacted via social networks, in cooperation with the Lithuanian Arthritis Association, the National Association of Third Age Universities and the Valakupiai Rehabilitation Centre. The questionnaire used in the study included: WHO-5 Well-Being Index, Graded Chronic Pain Scale Revised (GCPS-R), The Survey of Pain Attitudes-Brief (SOPA-B), Brief Ageing Perceptions Questionnaire (B-APQ), questions about subjective age. Findings showed reciprocal links between attitudes towards pain, perceptions of ageing and subjective age, which remained significant when well-being was controlled. Subjective age and perception of ageing predicted attitudes towards pain. This work adds a biopsychosocial perspective to research on chronic pain in the ageing community. |
