Nijs, Jo, Thielemans, Alice · Psychology and psychotherapy · 2008 · DOI
This study tested two questionnaires designed to measure fear of movement (called kinesiophobia) and symptom severity in ME/CFS patients. Researchers asked 100 Dutch speakers and 48 French speakers with ME/CFS to fill out these questionnaires twice within 24 hours. Both questionnaires worked reliably in both languages and accurately captured what patients said were their most important symptoms.
Having reliable, valid questionnaires in multiple languages is essential for ME/CFS research and clinical practice. These tools help clinicians assess both the psychological component (fear of movement) and symptom severity consistently across different populations, enabling better international research collaboration and patient assessment.
This study does not establish whether fear of movement causes or maintains ME/CFS symptoms, nor does it determine optimal treatment strategies. The study is a measurement validation exercise and does not investigate the mechanisms underlying kinesiophobia in ME/CFS or its clinical impact on outcomes.
About the PEM badge: “PEM required” means post-exertional malaise was an explicit required diagnostic criterion for participant inclusion in this study — not that PEM was studied, observed, or discussed. Studies using criteria that do not require PEM (e.g. Fukuda, Oxford) are tagged “PEM not required”. How the atlas works →
The first block is for the primary paper and is the citation you should use in research work. The atlas-snapshot line only applies if you are specifically referring to this atlas’s reading of the paper on the date shown.
Primary citation
Nijs, Jo & Thielemans, Alice (2008). Kinesiophobia and symptomatology in chronic fatigue syndrome: a psychometric study of two questionnaires.. Psychology and psychotherapy. https://doi.org/10.1348/147608308X306888
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-nijs-2008-kinesiophobia-symptomatology,
author = {Nijs, Jo and Thielemans, Alice},
title = {Kinesiophobia and symptomatology in chronic fatigue syndrome: a psychometric study of two questionnaires.},
journal = {Psychology and psychotherapy},
year = {2008},
doi = {10.1348/147608308X306888},
note = {PubMed: 18644213},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/nijs-2008-kinesiophobia-symptomatology},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-29. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/nijs-2008-kinesiophobia-symptomatology
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