TMI US: TMI US: Stress Management Corner

Stress and Change

You remember the "Life Change and Stress" scale that was popular a few years ago. It's formal name was called the Holmes Rahe Life Readjustment Scale, and it started off with an item: "Death of a Spouse." That was worth 100 points. Supposedly, if you had over 400 points, you were doomed.

The original research was conducted by two U.S. Navy medical researchers more than 30 years ago. Their intent was to find the relationship between stress and illness, and for a long time the public believed they had found that correlation. In fact, that mistaken notion still is prevalent today.

Actually, a close look at the follow-up research to the Holmes Rahe scale revealed that there was little correlation between change and stress as predicted on this scale. That is, some people had high scores on the test and didn't get sick. Others had low scores and got sick. You couldn't predict one way or another with any degree of accuracy, which would be the test for correlation.

The variables that really seemed to be interesting were the characteristics common among those who had high scores and didn't get sick. Suzanne Kobassa (who was then with the University of Chicago) called these people the "hardy" executives. The hardiness factors consisted of:

· Internal sense of control

· Action orientation

· High levels of self-esteem and

· Life plan with established priorities

It seems as if the Holmes Rahe research has been rectified, an updated version if you well, and published in 1997 in the Journal of Psychosomatic Research. Like the old scale, this one includes both positive and negative events, such as marriage and divorce. And as with the previous scale, the researchers say that a score of between 250 to 500 points means you have a moderate amount of stress. Scores over 500 could indicate you face an increased risk of illness.

These kinds of scales generally get a lot of press attention and are quite popular among seminar leaders. They are simple to score, they seem to resonate with people's belief systems, and they have the ring of science about them.

Perhaps this scale will receive the same attention that the earlier Holmes Rahe scale enjoyed, and again perhaps the public will be confused about change and illness. Let me reiterate that the earlier scale was unable to reveal a statistically significant correlation between high points on the scale and illness. If you take this latest test and find yourself with high scores, perhaps the best way to use this information is not to predict illness for yourself. Rather implement the "hardiness" factors to deal with all the change in your life.

Janelle M. Barlow, Ph.D.
Author of The Stress Manager

Previous "Stress Management Corner" pages:
      #1
      #2
        #3
      #4
      #5
      #6
      #7
      #8
      #9
    #10
    #11

Get involved with the Stress Management Corner. We're looking for stress management questions, relaxation techniques, resources or personal stories. Fax or e-mail your suggestions

Performing Under Pressure Program

The Stress Manager Book

TMI US
8270 West Charleston Blvd
Las Vegas, Nevada 89117

tel: 702 939-1800

fax: 702 939-1804

email: