Association between positive and negative affect and musculoskeletal pain among US home health aides

ABSTRACT

As the US population ages, there is an expected increase in demand for home health aides (HHAs); therefore, it is important to ensure their occupational well-being. Previous studies have demonstrated associations between negative emotions and musculoskeletal pain. Using survey data collected from 285 HHAs, we characterize the association between affect and musculoskeletal pain. Affect was measured using the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule, while musculoskeletal pain was measured using the Brief Pain Inventory. We found that as positive affect composite score increased, musculoskeletal pain decreased [β = –0.57, t(124) = –7.01, p < .001]. There was no significant association between the negative affect composite score and musculoskeletal pain. However, several individual moods were associated with decreased or increased pain. These data suggest that some moods may buffer against musculoskeletal pain, while others may predispose HHAs to musculoskeletal pain.

KEYWORDS:

• Affect
• home health aides
• mood
• musculoskeletal pain

Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge and thank our New England, Oregon, and Florida Home Health Agency partners and their home health aide workers for their time and participation in this pilot study. Dr Caban-Martinez serves as senior author and mentor to Student Doctor Ilana Mayer-Hirshfeld. The authors would like to thank Dr Rose Goldman for her guidance during the research project.

Institution and ethics approval and informed consent

The Harvard School of Public Health Institutional Review Board reviewed and approved the research protocol for this study (13-2798).

Funding

This investigation was made possible by Grant No. 2 T42 OH008416-09, from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of NIOSH. The Home Health Occupations—Musculoskeletal Examinations (HHOME) pilot study was supported by funding from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Harvard Education and Research Center Small Grants Program T42-OH008416 (PI: Dr. David Christiani and Dr. Rose Goldman, Faculty PI/Mentor), NIOSH Grant K01-OH010485 (PI: Dr. Alberto J. Caban-Martinez), and the Harvard School of Public Health—Liberty Mutual Research Institute for Safety Postdoctoral Research Fellowship program (Trainee: Dr. Lauren A. Murphy).