Abdominal Pain Beliefs Questionnaire – APBQ
Measures children's and adolescents' primary appraisals of the threat of their abdominal pain and secondary appraisals of their coping capabilities.
Scale Development & Technical Details
Scale Overview
The Abdominal Pain Beliefs Questionnaire – APBQ was developed by Lynn S. Walker, Judy Garber, Joseph W. Greene (1993). It is designed to measure Pain appraisal and coping in children. The scale is intended for use with Children and adolescents with chronic or recurrent abdominal pain.
Scale Structure
This instrument consists of 32 items organized into 7 factors/subscales: Condition-duration, Condition-frequency, Condition-Seriousness, Episode-duration, Episode-intensity, Problem-focused coping potential, Emotion-focused coping potential.
| Factor / Subscale | Items | N |
|---|---|---|
| Condition-duration | 2,8,15,32 | 4 |
| Condition-frequency | 5,12,22,30 | 4 |
| Condition-Seriousness | 1,10,16,24 | 4 |
| Episode-duration | 4,17,20,26 | 4 |
| Episode-intensity | 7,13,18,28 | 4 |
| Problem-focused coping potential | 3,11,19,21,27,31 | 6 |
| Emotion-focused coping potential | 6,9,14,23,25,29 | 6 |
Response Format
Respondents rate each item using a custom response format.
Response anchors: 0 = Not at all true, 1 = A little true, 2 = Some true, 3 = Mostly true, 4 = Very true.
The scale includes 14 reverse-scored items to reduce acquiescence bias.
Scoring
Items are scored by subscale, with each subscale sum representing a distinct dimension.
Psychometric Properties
Internal Consistency: The scale has demonstrated good to excellent internal consistency with reported Cronbach’s alpha values of Varies by subscale (typically Cronbach's alpha ranges from 0.68 to 0.87).
Administration
The scale is self-administered and typically takes approximately 10 minutes to complete. It can be administered individually or in group settings. No special training is required for administration.