Family Pain Questionnaire – FPQ
Measures the knowledge and experience of pain in family caregivers managing chronic cancer pain.
Scale Development & Technical Details
Scale Overview
The Family Pain Questionnaire – FPQ was developed by Betty R. Ferrell, Michelle Rhiner, Luisa M. Rivera (1993). It is designed to measure Caregiver pain knowledge and experience. The scale is intended for use with Family caregivers of cancer patients.
Scale Structure
This instrument consists of 16 items organized into 2 factors/subscales: Knowledge, Experience.
| Factor / Subscale | Items | N |
|---|---|---|
| Knowledge | 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9 | 9 |
| Experience | 10,11,12,13,14,15,16 | 7 |
Response Format
Respondents rate each item using a custom response format.
Response anchors: 0 = 0 (Disagree / No pain / Will get better), 1 = 1, 2 = 2, 3 = 3, 4 = 4, 5 = 5, 6 = 6, 7 = 7, 8 = 8, 9 = 9, 10 = 10 (Agree / A great deal / Will get worse).
The scale includes 5 reverse-scored items to reduce acquiescence bias.
Scoring
Items are scored by subscale, with each subscale sum representing a distinct dimension.
Total scores range from 0 to 160. Interpretation guidelines:
- Low barriers / Good pain management knowledge and experience: 0 – 53
- Moderate barriers / Moderate pain management knowledge and experience: 54 – 106
- High barriers / Poor pain management knowledge and experience: 107 – 160
Psychometric Properties
Internal Consistency: The scale has demonstrated good to excellent internal consistency with reported Cronbach’s alpha values of Test-retest reliability r = 0.80.
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.