life events

rahe et al

how is stress calculated

in Life Changing Units

Holmes + Rahe

SRRS

developed social readjustment rating scale. self questionnaire to calculate your LCU

Rahe et al

aims

see if SRRS scores predict illness

Rahe et al

procedure

2664 Navy personnel  had their LCU measured over 6 months.

Rahe et al

findings

small but significant relation between LCU and illness

most stressed = most ill

Rahe et al

conclusion

Life events are a reasonably robust predictor of stress. most illness was minor so influence may only be weak

Rahe et al

strengths

lots of supporting evidence for this

Rahe et al

strengths

large sample size

Rahe et al

weakness

assumed all life events are stressful muddles + and - life events

Rahe et al

weakness

used a self-report method so may not be valid