Mediator Variables in Headache Research: Methodological Critique and Exemplar Using Self-Efficacy as a Mediator of the Relationship Between Headache Severity and Disability.

There is a need for theory-driven and statistically rigorous mediation analyses within the headache literature. In one exemplar application, self-efficacy partially accounted for the disability resulting from headache. We advocate for increased attention to intervening variables in headache via dissemination of contemporary mediation analyses.