Validation of the Korean version of the Pain Catastrophizing Scale in patients with chronic non-cancer pain

Pain catastrophizing often has been measured using the Pain Catastrophizing Scale (PCS). Studies of the PCS nearly consistently support its three-factor structure (i.e., helplessness, magnification, and rumination) and satisfactory psychometric properties across different countries and languages. This study aimed to assess the generalizability of the three-factor structure of the PCS to Korean patients with chronic non-cancer pain and to investigate reliability, measurement error, and construct validity of a Korean version of the PCS (K-PCS).

A total of 182 patients with chronic pain seeking treatment in a tertiary pain center located in Seoul, Korea, participated.

Confirmatory factor analysis demonstrated the adequacy of the three-factor structure of the K-PCS; ‘helplessness,’ ‘magnification,’ and ‘rumination.’ The internal consistency for ‘helplessness,’ ‘magnification,’ ‘rumination,’ and total scale of the K-PCS were Cronbach’s α = .90, .71, .86, and .93, respectively; test–retest stability, ICC = .77, .73, .65, and .79, respectively; the standard estimation of measurement, 1.93, 1.34, 2.13, and 3.72, respectively; the minimum detectable change, 5.33, 3.70, 5.89, and 10.28, respectively; and the limits of agreement, −7.66 to 9.20, −5.07 to 5.01, −7.30 to 6.86, and −15.26 to 16.46, respectively. At least moderate positive correlations were observed between the K-PCS and pain intensity, depression, and pain-related anxiety, and moderate negative correlations between the K-PCS and physical and psychological functioning.

The K-PCS has the reliability, measurement error, and construct validity support for assessing pain catastrophizing in a Korean patient sample with chronic non-cancer pain.