Résumé
Background: Pain is a common experience in adolescence and can affect participation and quality of life. Adolescents’ knowledge and beliefs about pain influence their responses and coping strategies. Inaccurate beliefs, such as a lack of awareness of central nervous system processes may contribute to maladaptive pain behaviours. While pain science education (PSE) has shown promise in treatment settings, little is known about how pain-related knowledge and beliefs among school-aged adolescents in the general population align with contemporary pain science. This study aimed to evaluate adolescents’ knowledge and beliefs of pain in Central Switzerland. Methods: A cross-sectional online survey was conducted in fi ve public schools in German-speaking Switzerland with adolescents aged 11–17 years. Adolescents’ knowledge and beliefs of pain was assessed using the Concept of Pain Inventory (COPI) (German version). The 14 items are rated on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 0 (strongly disagree) to 4 (strongly agree), with total scores ranging from 0 to 56. Higher scores indicate greater alignment with current scientific understanding of pain. Exploratory analyses tested for differences in COPI scores between those adolescents with and without chronic pain and according to age. Data were analysed descriptively and inferentially. Results: A total of 616 students completed the survey (response rate: 87.3 %). The mean COPI score was 31.0 (SD = 8.8; range: 0–56). For 7 of the 14 items, more than 50 % of students selected responses indicating disagreement or uncertainty (scores of 0–2, strongly disagree to unsure). The lowest-rated statement was “Learning about pain can help you feel less pain” (mode = 2, unsure). The highest-rated statement was "If you do something you enjoy, you can feel less pain." (mode = 3, agree). There was no significant difference in COPI scores between adolescents with chronic pain (26.1 %) and those without (mean difference: 1.13; 95 % CI: –0.34 to 2.59; p = 0.131). Scores increased with age: 29.9 for 11–14-year-olds and 33.5 for 15–17-year-olds (t = –4.89; p < .001; 95 % CI: –4.96 to –2.12). Conclusions: This study identified misconceptions and knowledge gaps in adolescents’ understanding of pain. Adolescents could benefit from structured, age-appropriate education informed by pain science.