20.500.12556/RUL-185447 Psychological characteristics of children and adolescents with chronic non-malignant pain in the Slovenian rehabilitation program Psihološke značilnosti otrok in mladostnikov s kronično nerakavo bolečino v Sloveniji The prevalence of chronic non-malignant pain in the population of children and adolescents is increasing. This study aimed to describe the psychological characteristics of children and adolescents experiencing chronic non-malignant pain in Slovenia, where this population has not been thoroughly researched. Our sample comprised 37 individuals, referred to the outpatient therapy program at the children’s rehabilitation department of the national rehabilitation institute in the period from January 2019 to May 2024. The average age of the participants was 14.2 years. Each of them underwent a comprehensive psychological assessment. Our investigation focused on inter- and intrapersonal factors influencing pain experience. Within the realm of interpersonal factors, noteworthy aspects included belonging to a single-parent household, elevated family conflicts, parental mental health issues, and instances of peer violence. In the intrapersonal domain, findings revealed deficiencies in stress coping mechanisms, challenges with emotional regulation, and the presence of anxiety and depression symptoms. In general, the participants demonstrated a limited insight into their mood disturbances. Pain-questionnaire scores exhibited significant correlations with anxiety and depression symptoms, but not with pain characteristics. Given the pronounced level of depression and anxiety symptoms, as well as insufficient coping capacities, we believe that adopting relationship-based therapeutic approaches would be beneficial for children and adolescents with chronic non-malignant pain. chronic non-malignant pain children psychological characteristics adolescents kronična nerakava bolečina otroci mladostniki psihološke značilnosti true false true Angleški jezik Slovenski jezik Članek v reviji 2026-08-05 11:35:37 2026-08-05 11:35:38 2026-08-06 07:24:11 0000-00-00 00:00:00 2026 0 0 11 str. Letn. 35 2026 0000-00-00 Zaloznikova Objavljeno NiDoloceno 0000-00-00 0000-00-00 0000-00-00 159.96 2350-5141 10.20419/2026.35.625 284852739 RAZ_Horvat_Rauter_Barbara_2026.pdf RAZ_Horvat_Rauter_Barbara_2026.pdf 1 0F76A9B2CB4DD815B6C13F2E607A5C63 296d4302090873727522c70f48d140d73ca68010b62355ac71bc9a8b08f89847 fb929110-90b0-11f1-9b0d-0050569b8976 https://repozitorij.uni-lj.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=243956 https://journals.uni-lj.si/psiholoska-obzorja/article/view/19451/21512 1 b4e253b2-90b0-11f1-9b0d-0050569b8976 https://repozitorij.uni-lj.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=243955 Medicinska fakulteta 0 0 0