P02.130. The relationship of client expectations of massage to changes in pain and affect: results from a practice-based research study

Methods Practice-based research was used to collect client data (N=321) before and after a massage provided by one of 24 licensed massage therapists in Iowa. The pre-massage survey included items regarding their chief complaint, the client expectations of massage scale, the numeric rating scale for pain, and the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule Expanded form (PANAS-X). The post-massage survey included the same measures of pain and affect as well as demographics. Paired t-tests were used to test for significant changes in pain and affect. A structural equation model with outcome, interpersonal, clinical, and educational expectations as latent exogenous variables and changes in serenity, negative and positive affect, and pain as endogenous variables was tested using Mplus.