Pain and Health Psychology

The past 35 years have seen a tremendous shift in the recognition and development of health psychology, resulting in tremendous advances in pain management research and clinical care. This chapter details the evolution of health psychology and how this evolution has been reflected in the study and treatment of pain, beginning with a discussion of the biopsychosocial model of pain and culminating in the emergence of increasingly complex interdisciplinary programs designed to address the most complex pain syndromes. Advances in pain management are reviewed, including descriptions of efficacy and, where available, cost-effectiveness.