ArticleEuropean journal of pain (London, England)2026
Exploring the Power of Peer-Related Social Factors in Mediating the Effects of Pain on Loneliness and Stress in Adolescents.
Article in European journal of pain (London, England), 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
14 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundChronic pain in adolescents is associated with loneliness and increases in stress, which in turn elevate the risk of worse pain-related outcomes. Positive peer-related social factors mediate the relationship between stress and loneliness amongst those without pain, but it is not known if this holds in the presence of pain characteristics. It is also unknown if peer-related social factors (e.g., social support) mediate the relationship between pain characteristics and loneliness.
methodsA cross-sectional survey using validated measures was completed by 128 adolescents with chronic pain. Mediation with moderation analysis using Hayes Process Macro was conducted to explore if peer-related social factors mediated the relationship between pain intensity and pain-related interference on loneliness and stress as well as stress on loneliness. Demographic variables were assessed as moderators.
resultsOne's perceived social competence and social support from friends mediated the relationship between pain characteristics and loneliness, pain characteristics and stress, and stress and loneliness for males and females. The number of friends did not mediate these relationships. Socioeconomic status moderated the relationship between pain characteristics and stress, with those in higher income families experiencing significant increases in stress as pain characteristics increased.
conclusionStrengthening peer-related social factors is a promising avenue for chronic pain management for adolescents as these factors explain why some adolescents with chronic pain experience less loneliness. Examining the effectiveness of evidenced-based interventions found to decrease loneliness in adolescents without pain is warranted in this population. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: Adolescents with chronic pain are at risk for increases in loneliness and stress, both of which are associated with worse pain-related outcomes. Using validated measures, findings indicate that peer-related social factors meditated the effect of pain intensity and pain-related interference on loneliness and stress. Peer-related social factors were also significant in mediating the relationship between stress and loneliness. Peer-related social factors contribute to resiliency amongst adolescents with chronic pain and offer a promising avenue to improve pain-related outcomes.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.