Table 1.

Interview guidelines

Introductory questions

• Have you ever experienced problems with your joints?

° If yes: when? What did you do? Who did you tell? How did you cope? How worried were you?

• How worried would you be now if you developed joint problems? What would worry you the most?

• What would you do in the future? (if you developed joint problems)

• How would having joint problems affect your life? OR How severe would a joint problem have to be to affect your life?

Specific symptoms

Swollen joints

• What would you think if you noticed your fingers were swollen? What would you attribute swollen fingers to?

• Would swollen fingers worry you?

• What would you do about it?

• If your feet were swollen, would you feel differently or would your actions be different?

° If different: Why do you think that is?

° Would it worry you?

Joint stiffness in the morning

• What would you think if you woke one morning and found that your joints were stiff? What would you attribute it to?

• What would you do about it?

• What would you do if the stiff feeling did not disappear for over an hour?

• What would you do if this continued for a week/one month/six months/one year?

• At what point would you become worried or anxious about feeling stiff in the morning?

Painful joints

• What would you do if you experienced pain in one of your joints (e.g. in your fingers?)

• What would you do if you experienced pain in two joints (e.g. in more than one finger)?

• What would you do if you experienced pain in three or more joints (e.g. in lots of fingers on both hands)?

• If your feet were in pain, would you feel differently or would your actions be different?

• Would painful joints in your hands/feet/elsewhere worry you?

Knowledge of rheumatoid arthritis

• What do you understand about what may cause joint pain?

• What do you know about arthritis in general?

• What do you know about rheumatoid arthritis?

• What symptoms would you associate with rheumatoid arthritis?

• What symptoms would you associate with osteoarthritis?

• What would be the difference between rheumatoid arthritis and other joint problems?

• What do you know about what goes on in the joints with rheumatoid arthritis/osteoarthritis?

• Do you know anyone with rheumatoid arthritis?*

Illness perceptions about rheumatoid arthritis

• Is rheumatoid arthritis a serious condition?

• If you were told you had rheumatoid arthritis, how long do you think it would last?

• How would you know you had the condition – what signs would there be?

• With whom do you associate arthritis/rheumatoid arthritis (i.e. who is the typical patient)?

• What would be the consequences of having rheumatoid arthritis for day‐to‐day living?

• What are the causes of rheumatoid arthritis?

• Do you think you would be able to control rheumatoid arthritis yourself?

• Would you need medical help?

• Do you think there are treatments available that would effectively treat rheumatoid arthritis?

• What kinds of treatment do you know?

^* Answers to this question were used to identify whether participants fulfilled the inclusion criteria in the current analysis