There has been much interest in identifying variables that can predict which individuals are susceptible to developing chronic low-back pain. There currently are a number of studies that are evaluating primary predictors (which uninjured workers are likely to develop chronic low-back pain) and secondary predictors (which workers with acute episodes will develop chronic pain). The present study reports the first results from a large-scale investigation of tertiary predictors. Specifically, it addresses the issue of what psychosociomedical variables are predictive of success/failure in response to a comprehensive Functional Restoration treatment program by workers who are chronically disabled with low-back pain. Three stages were involved in the development of this prediction model. First, a group of treatment and research professionals who had extensive experience in the area of chronic low-back pain identified an array of 42 variables, from a larger pool of quantified physical, psychosocial, and medical parameters rated to be important with this patient population.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)