Detailled Information

Name of the Instrument/Tool	Pain Catastrophizing Scale (PCS)
First Description	Sullivan MJL, Bishop SR, Pivik, J.The Pain Catastrophizing Scale: Development and validation. Psychol Assess, 1995;7(4):524–532.
Year	1995

Domains
Concept of constructs	Pain, Fear
Population/Disease	Disease specific
Originally developed for	---
Other rheumatic diseases where can be applied (only if validated)	Psoriatic Arthritis (PsA), Chronic musculoskeletal pain, Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA), Osteoarthritis (OA), Fibromyalgia (FM)
Additional population with no rheumatic diseases	Yes Chronic Pain
Language: Originally published in	English
Available in Language	Japanese, German, Thai, Spanish, Russian, Dutch, Italian, French, Chinese, Arabic, Korean, Portuguese

REFERENCE IDENTIFICATION
Author/s	Sullivan MJL, Bishop SR, Pivik, J.
Title	The Pain Catastrophizing Scale: Development and validation.
Journal	Psychol Assess
Year	1995
Vol	7
Num	4
Pages	524–532
Country	Canada
Language	English

Other references of interest
Link	https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25766681/
Brief Description	Development and evaluation of short forms of the Pain Catastrophizing Scale and the Pain Self-efficacy Questionnaire
Link	https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9429990/
Brief Description	Factor structure, reliability, and validity of the Pain Catastrophizing Scale
Link	https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30035754/
Brief Description	Pain and Catastrophizing in Patients With Rheumatoid Arthritis: An Observational Cohort Study

Instrument/Tool Translations References
Link	https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28087217/
Brief Description	Psychometric properties of the Japanese version of short forms of the Pain Catastrophizing Scale in participants with musculoskeletal pain: A cross-sectional study
Link	https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18440399/
Brief Description	Cross-cultural adaptation, reliability, and validity of the German version of the Pain Catastrophizing Scale
Link	https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28616005/
Brief Description	Development and validation of Arabic version of the pain catastrophizing scale

DEVELOPER CONTACT INFORMATION
Correspondence to	Michael J L Sullivan
E-Mail	michael.sullivan@mcgill.ca
Address	---
Website	https://sullivan-painresearch.mcgill.ca/
Available	---
Links	---

DESCRIPTION OF THE INSTRUMENT
Type Of Measure	Scale
Brief Description	The PCS aims to assess catastrophic thinking related to pain among adults with or without chronic pain. The scale comprises 13 items related to magnification (item 6,7,13), rumination (item 8, 9, 10, 11), and helplessness (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 12). To facilitate quick screening and to reduce participant's burden, the four-item and six-item short forms of the English version of the PCS were developed.
Number of Items	13
Range	0-52
Responses options/scale	Yes 0 (not at all) to 4 (all the time)
Developed for	Both

PRACTICAL APPLICATION
Method of administration	Interviewer/assessor, Self-administered
Recommendations to score	People are asked to indicate the degree to which they have the above thoughts and feelings when they are experiencing pain from 0 (not at all) to 4 (all the time) The PCS total score is computed by summing responses to all 13 items. The PCS subscales are computed by summing the responses to the following items: Rumination: Sum of items 8, 9, 10, 11 Magnification: Sum of items 6, 7, 13 Helplessness: Sum of items 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 12
Score Interpretation	Higher score indicates higher catastrophizing
Cut-off points	>30 indicates clinically relevant catastrophizing- Subclinical = 0 to 29; Mild = 30 to 39; Moderate = 40 to 49; Severe = 50 to 59; Extreme = 60 to 100.
Cut-off points applied to	Routine care
Smallest detectable change if described	---
Smallest detectable change applied to	---
Completion time by the patient	5 minutes
Scoring time by the assessor	- minutes
Training to score	Not necessary
Strengths	Easy to use, Useful in clinical practice & research, Widely used
Limitations	---

OTHER COMMENTS
Other Comments	---