(© 2009 : Career Diagnostics)

Holmes-Rahe Social Readjustment Scale

How [dis]stressed are you?

In 1967, psychiatrists Thomas Holmes and Richard Rahe examined the medical records of over 5,000 medical patients as a way to determine whether stressful events might cause illnesses. Patients were asked to tally a list of 43 life events based on a relative score. A positive 0.1 correlation was found between their life events and their illnesses.

Their results were published as the Social Readjustment Rating Scale (SRRS), known more commonly as the Holmes and Rahe Stress Scale. Subsequent validation has supported the links between stress and illness.

Source: Wikipedia

Select "True" for any of the 43 items below that you have experienced within the last 12 months.

On completion of the survey, click the "Check Score" button to tally your results. Record your results somewhere safe for future reference. Once your scores are recorded, click on the "Submit" button. This will send your results for each question to Career Diagnostics, which will allow us to collate and analyse results anonymously.

Over time we will be able to publish broad results for various demographics.

Caution: When using the mouse to scroll down the page, it is easy to inadvertently change the last selection made prior to scrolling. "Left Click" the mouse on the page before scrolling up or down.

Interpreting Your Score.

Less than 150 life change units : you have a 30% chance of developing a stress-related illness
150 - 299 life change units : you have a 50% chance of illness
Over 300 life change units : you have a 80% chance of illness

The relationship between the items in the Holmes-Rahe Social Readjustment Scale and subsequent illness may not necessarily be causal in nature. The research undertaken simply establishes a statistically significant correlation between these items and illness.