Stress Measurement
a) Physiological Measures
According to the biological models of Cannon and Seyle, stress is
characterised by distinctive physiological symptoms which can be
measure using polygraphs (like lie detectors)
A polygraph involves wiring the person up to a series of sensors.
These are used to measure external physiological symptoms such
as respiration and heart rate, blood pressure and sweatiness.
Evaluation
a) These are reliable and objective and produce quantitative results.
b) Demand characteristics. The act of being tested may create a stress response which can bias the
results. This is why lie-detector results are not admissible evidence in British courts.
c) Generalisability: bodily arousal can come from many non-stress causes, weight, activity, drug
consumption. Also it is possible to feel stress without having physiological arousal.
b) Psychological Measures (psychometric tests)
Psychological measures are self-report measures using psychometric tests.
(i) Holmes and Rahe (1967) Social Readjustment Rating Scale (SRRS).
H&R defined stress in terms of the change caused to a person’s life (change
can be positive, negative or neutral but would still be stressful by their
definition). H&R argued that whenever an individual had to make “a
substantial adjustment to the environment, the likelihood of stress is high”.
Holmes & Rahe first examined the medical records of around 5000 people.
They found that, in many cases, significant life changes occurred in the
months preceding the onset of illness. They selected 43 of these life events
and asked a sample of 394 people to rate the degree of ‘social readjustment’ required for each event
(death of spouse was given the arbitrary value of 100 and marriage the arbitrary value of 50). Based
on these results, they constructed the SRRS.
Each life event was ranked and assigned a number of life change units (LCUs) from 100 to 11. A
person’s stress score is the sum of all the life change units for events they have experienced within a
period of 12 months.
Evaluation
a) Reliability and Validity: There was considerable consensus about which events were most and least
stressful. However, it is not valid because it doesn’t find out about the real meaning of these events
which could vary – bereavement after a long illness is felt differently to premature bereavement.
b) Usefulness: Questionnaire, easy to fill in and to compile results. Therefore widely used in medicine.
c) Ethnocentricity: look at the items for evidence that the SSRS assumes American norms and values.
d) Individual differences: some items may involve wide differences in stress levels. Whether change is
positive or negative could well effect the stress level. Marriage and death for example depend on the
circumstances.
e) Retrospective data: Information about life events is usually collected at least 6 months and often 18
months after the events happened. This means problems of validity – people may interpret past
events in the light of present illness (or health).
The Social Readjustment Rating Scale (SRRS)
RANK
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LIFE EVENT
Death of spouse
Divorce
Marital separation
Jail term
Death of close family member
Personal injury or illness
Marriage
Fired at work
Marital reconciliation
Retirement
Change in health of family member
Pregnancy
Sex difficulties
Gain of new family member
Business readjustment
Change in financial state
Death of close friend
Change to different line of work
Change in number of arguments with
spouse
Mortgage or loan over $10, 000
Foreclosure of mortgage or loan
Change in responsibilities at work
Son or daughter leaving home
Trouble with in-laws
Outstanding personal achievement
Wife begins or stops work
Begin or end school
Change in living conditions
Revision of personal habits
Trouble with boss
Change in work hours or conditions
Change in residence
Chang in schools
Change in recreation
Change in church activities
Change in social activities
Mortgage or loan less than $10, 000
Change in sleeping habits
Change in number of family get-togethers
Change in eating habits
Vacation
Christmas
Minor violations of the law
: Health: Stress
VALUE
100
73
65
63
63
53
50
47
45
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44
40
39
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35
31
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28
26
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11
7
(ii) Kanner et al, 1981: Daily Hassles & Uplifts
An alternative self-report measure for stress was designed by Kanner. He argued that H&R focused
on the big but rare events which are not central to people’s everyday experience. Instead he believed
that the small but frequent ‘daily hassles’ were a more important source of stress, eg losing keys,
oversleeping, having to write an essay etc
On the other hand, certain day-to-day events can have positive effects on stress levels. So, in addition
to hassles, Kanner's scale also takes into account uplifts - such as a compliment or a present.
Key Study Kanner et al 1981
Aim: to see if daily hassles and uplifts scales are more accurate in predicting stress than the SSRS
Method:
Kanner devised a list of 117 hassles and 135 uplifts. Participants were asked to circle the events
which they had experienced in the previous month and then rate each according to severity (for the
hassles) and frequency (for the uplifts).
Each participant was tested once a month for ten consecutive months using the two stress measures
together with another two psychometric tests for psychological well-being.
Sample
100 participants (52 women, 48 men; all white, well-educated and well-off) in Alameda County (San
Francisco).
Results
The researchers found that the hassles scale tended to be a more accurate predictor of psychological
problems than the SRRS. Uplifts had a significant effect on stress levels of women, but not men.
The table below lists the ten most common daily hassles and uplifts
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Daily Hassles
Concerns about weight
Health of a family member
Rising price of common goods
Home maintenance
Too many things to do
Misplacing or losing things
Outside home maintenance
Property, investment or taxes
Crime
Physical appearance
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5
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8
9
10
Daily Uplifts
Relating well to spouse or partner
Relating well to friends
Completing a task
Feeling healthy
Getting enough sleep
Eating out
Meeting your responsibilities
Visiting, phoning or writing to someone
Spending time with the family
Finding your home a pleasant environment
Evaluation
The daily hassles scale has most of the same problems as the SRRS. The link between hassles and
psychological and physical disorders is correlational. For example, the increase in hassles preceding
a cold may be due to feeling rundown as a result of the early stages of the illness. Because of this,
situations which people would normally take in their stride are interpreted and experienced as
hassles.