Introduction: Chronic pain is the most common pain that can cause problems in all areas of human activity. One of the therapeutic approaches to reducing and managing the impact of chronic pain is the therapy of acceptance and devotion, which through alertness, acceptance, commitment and behavioral activation contributes to greater psychological flexibility, which through diversion of thought, behavior, attention affects chronic pain management. Occupational therapists are members of an interdisciplinary team for the treatment of people with chronic pain, so it is important that they understand and follow the principles of the cognitive-behavioral reference framework in the implementation of treatment. Purpose: The purpose of thesis, we wanted to review in more detail the literature on how occupational therapists include the principles of acceptance and commitment therapy in the treatment of people with chronic pain. Methods: We conducted a systematic review of the literature published since 2010. The analysis included articles that we searched for using online bibliographic databases written in Slovene or English. Results: The thematic analysis of selected articles highlighted the topics of vigilant performance of activities and the connection between occupational therapy and psychological flexibility. It was found that the vigilant, t. i. targeted and deliberate focusing can enable better implementation and involvement in activities. It also affects change and response to behavior during implementation. However, occupational therapy treatment of people with chronic pain can contribute to psychological flexibility, especially by supporting contact with the present moment, recognizing and respecting values, deepening committed activity, and cognitive diffusion and acceptance. Discussion and conclusion: A review of the limited literature has shown that occupational therapists incorporate the principles of acceptance and commitment therapy into treating people with chronic pain by using a mindfulness approach and addressing some elements of psychological flexibility through enabling participation in activities. In addition to enabling the placement of formal mindfulness training in everyday life as an important strategy for managing the effects of pain and stress, the role of occupational therapist is especially important in encouraging informal exercise while performing daily activities with purposeful awareness and recognition of thoughts, feelings and responses.
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