Basic Science: Social, Vocational, and Psychological Influences on Pain Perception

Many factors influence an individual’s experience of pain. The pain experience has been best understood based on the biopsychosocial model that includes overall summation of physical, emotional, and perceptual inputs. When a pain signal is initiated due to injury, peripheral pathways are activated and a signaling cascade occurs via the dorsal horn to higher centers of the central nervous system. This pathway, and the signals along its way, have many variables and influences. For instance, mental health disorders such as major depression and generalized anxiety disorder have significant influence on this pathway. Other factors such as age, gender, education, social, and vocational factors play a significant role in an individual’s experience of pain.