Screening psychological factors in pelvic pain: Validation of the pelvic pain psychological screening questionnaire (3PSQ)

The Pelvic Pain Psychological Screening Questionnaire (3PSQ) was developed to assess psychological distress in people with persistent pelvic pain. This study aimed to investigate its psychometric properties and determine its convergent validity with seven existing measures of psychological distress. People with pelvic pain, with or without a formal diagnosis, were recruited via social media, health professional referral, and word of mouth to complete an online survey. Rasch analysis was conducted to investigate unidimensionality, targeting, response category functioning and item bias. Correlational analysis was then used to establish its relationship with existing measures. Data was available for 761 participants, predominantly female (93.3%), and the 3PSQ was shown to represent a unidimensional scale that well-targeted the sample and has negligible floor and ceiling effects. The response categories functioned as expected and minimal item bias was detected. The 3PSQ demonstrated moderate to strong relationships with the Pain Anxiety Symptom Scale (r =.76), Pain Catastrophizing Scale (r =.83), Pain Self-Efficacy Questionnaire (r = -.66), Pain Vigilance & Awareness Questionnaire (r =.57), Patient Health Questionnaire 4 (r =.64), Perceived Stress Scale (r =.42) and Whiteley Index (ρ =.55). These findings suggest the 3PSQ can be used as a valid measure of psychological distress in people with PPP and, at the individual item level, identify factors that warrant further investigation. Future research could explore the 3PSQ’s relevance in culturally and linguistically diverse, male and non-binary populations.

Perspective

The Pelvic Pain Psychological Screening Questionnaire (3PSQ) is a psychometrically sound measure of psychological distress and shows significant correlation with existing psychological measures. This tool could potentially guide clinicians’ decision making when working with people with persistent pelvic pain.