The contribution of purpose in life to psychological morbidity and quality of life in chronic pain patients

Abstract

Chronic pain is a cause of morbidity, interference with daily functioning, decreased health and quality of life. Purpose in life acts as a protective factor and mitigates these consequences. This cross-sectional study aimed to determine whether purpose in life contributed to psychological morbidity and quality of life in patients with chronic pain by controlling psychological variables related to health (pain severity and interference, pain perceptions, pain catastrophizing and coping). The sample included 103 patients diagnosed with chronic pain. Results showed that purpose in life independently contributed to psychological morbidity and to mental quality of life, but not to physical quality of life, after controlling for pain-related variables. Results showed the relevance of purpose in life to identify patients at risk of developing psychological morbidity and decreased quality of life, suggestting the need to intervene in chronic pain, specifically on purpose in life, to prevent psychological morbidity and promote quality of life, in this population.