Chronic pain is a common, costly, and consequential health problem. However, despite some important analytic contributions, sociological research on pain has not yet coalesced into a unified subfield. We present three interrelated bodies of evidence, and illustrative new empirical findings using 2010-2018 NHIS data, to argue that pain should have a central role in sociological investigations of health. Specifically, we contend that (1) pain is a sensitive barometer of population health and wellbeing; (2) pain is emblematic of many contested and/or chronic conditions; and (3) pain and pain treatment reflect, and have wide-ranging implications for, public policy. Overall, whether we analyze pain quantitatively or qualitatively—focusing on its distribution in the population, its social causes and consequences, or its subjective meanings for individuals—pain reflects the social conditions, sociopolitical context, and health-related beliefs of a society. Pain is thus an important frontier for future sociological research.

Determining long-term trends in chronic pain prevalence is critical for evaluating and shaping US health policies, but little research has examined such trends. This study (1) provides estimates of pain trends among US adults across major population groups; (2) tests whether sociodemographic disparities in pain have widened or narrowed over time; and (3) examines socioeconomic, behavioral, psychological, and medical correlates of pain trends. Regression and decomposition analyses of joint, low-back, neck, migraine, and jaw/facial pain using the 2002-2018 National Health Interview Survey for adults aged 25-84 (N=441,707) assess the trends and their correlates. We find extensive escalation of pain prevalence in all population subgroups: overall, reports of pain in at least one site increased by 10%, representing an additional 10.5 million adults experiencing pain. Socioeconomic disparities are widening over time, and psychological distress and health behaviors are among the salient correlates of the trends. This study thus comprehensively documents rising pain prevalence among Americans across the adult life span and highlights socioeconomic, behavioral, and psychological factors as important correlates of the trends. Chronic pain is an important dimension of population health and demographic research should include it when studying health and health disparities.