The Pain and PRAYER Scale (PPRAYERS): development and validation of a scale to measure pain-related prayer

Abstract

OBJECTIVES Prayer is a devotional practice used across religious traditions to commune with the sacred and has been used as a coping strategy for pain. Previous research on prayer as a pain-coping strategy has mixed results with prayer associated with both greater and lesser pain depending on prayer type. To date there is only one measure of pain-related prayer, the prayer subscale of the Coping Strategies Questionnaire-Revised which solely measures passive prayer, neglecting other types of prayer (e.g., active and neutral). To better understand the relationship between pain and prayer a comprehensive measure of prayer for pain is needed. The aim of this study was to develop and validate the Pain-related PRAYER Scale (PPRAYERS), a questionnaire exploring active, passive, and neutral petitionary prayers to God or a Higher Power in response to pain. METHODS Adults with chronic pain (N = 411) completed demographic, health, and pain-related questionnaires including PPRAYERS. RESULTS Results of an exploratory factor analysis yielded a three-factor structure consistent with active, passive, and neutral subscales. A confirmatory factor analysis resulted in adequate fit following the removal of five items. PPRAYERS showed good internal consistency as well as convergent and discriminant validity. DISCUSSION These results provide preliminary validation for PPRAYERS, a novel measure for pain-related prayer.