@article{ref1,
title="Why and when social support predicts older adults' pain-related disability: a longitudinal study",
journal="Pain",
year="2017",
author="Matos, Marta and Bernardes, Sónia F. and Goubert, Liesbet",
volume="158",
number="10",
pages="1915-1924",
abstract="Pain-related social support has been shown to be directly associated with pain-related disability, depending on whether it promotes functional autonomy or dependence. However, previous studies mostly relied on cross-sectional methods, precluding conclusions on the temporal relationship between pain-related social support and disability. Also, research on the behavioral and psychological processes that account for such a relationship is scarce. Therefore, this study aimed at investigating the following longitudinally: (1) direct effects of social support for functional autonomy/dependence on pain-related disability, (2) mediating role of physical functioning, pain-related self-efficacy, and fear, and (3) whether pain duration and pain intensity moderate such mediating processes. A total of 168 older adults (Mage = 78.3; SDage = 8.7) participated in a 3-month prospective design, with 3 moments of measurement, with a 6-week lag between them. Participants completed the Formal Social Support for Autonomy and Dependence in Pain Inventory, the Brief Pain Inventory, the 36-SF Health Survey, behavioral tasks from the Senior Fitness Test, the Pain Self-Efficacy Questionnaire, and the Tampa Scale for Kinesiophobia. Moderated mediation analyses showed that formal social support for functional dependence (T1) predicted an increase in pain-related disability (T3), that was mediated by self-reported physical functioning (T2) and by pain-related self-efficacy (T2) at short to moderate pain duration and at low to moderate pain intensity, but not at higher levels. <br><br>FINDINGS emphasized that social support for functional dependence is a risk factor for pain-related disability and uncovered the &quot;why&quot; and &quot;when&quot; of this relationship. Implications for the design of social support interventions aiming at promoting older adults' healthy aging despite chronic pain are drawn.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0304-3959",
doi="10.1097/j.pain.0000000000000990",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/j.pain.0000000000000990"
}