Abstract
Injury/illness sensitivity (IS) is conceptualized as a fundamental fear that underlies fear-related psychopathology and chronic health conditions, including chronic pain. The current study examines...
Highlights
Injury/illness sensitivity (IS) is conceptualized as a fundamental fear that underlies fear-related psychopathology and chronic health conditions, including chronic pain
We examined whether differences existed between participants who reported to suffer from no or acute pain and those who reported to suffer from chronic pain complaints
Results of the Confirmatory factor Analyses (CFA) indicated that while a one-factor model results in unacceptable model fit, the proposed two-factor structure, with four items tapping into Fear of Injury and five items tapping into Fear of Illness, provides a reasonable fit to the data
Summary
Injury/illness sensitivity (IS) is conceptualized as a fundamental fear that underlies fear-related psychopathology and chronic health conditions, including chronic pain. The measure’s validity was supported by strong correlations between the ISI-R and wellestablished pain and physical health-related anxiety measures, moderate correlations with measures that reflect general negative emotionality (e.g. anxiety, depression), and weak correlations with fear constructs that do not entail a direct link to a health threat. These results indicate the appropriateness of working with the Dutch ISI-R and its two subscales as a reliable and valid measure of fear of physical harm, Fear of Illness and Fear of Injury. On a cognitive behavioral level, IS was found to be associated with reduced tolerance for experimentally induced pain, increased preventive health behavior (e.g. avoiding risky situations, wear braces to prevent recurrence of pain), use of health-care services (e.g. self-initiated doctor visits, medication use), and the tendency to make negative interpretations of pain-related ambiguity (Vancleef & Peters, 2008; Vancleef, Peters, Gilissen, & De Jong, 2007)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
