This is the Social Readjustment Rating Scale. It was developed in the fifties by a group of scientists led by Thomas Holmes and Richard Rahe. It ranks forty-three stressful experiences on a scale based on the severity of the impact on a person's life, using LCUs, or Life Changing Units. To figure out how much each experience is worth in LCUs, many people were interviewed and medical histories were consulted to see which stressors affected the body the most. In these interviews getting married was a common stressor, and usually it weighed heavier than most, so it was given the value of 50 LCUs and all of the other stressors were fitted in based on how they compared to marriage. This is probably not the best system for measuring the amount of stress in people's lives, and there has been a lot of critism concerning it, the main argument being that humans are complex beings should not ever be measured on a linear scale. It is the quiz included here however, because it is concise and easy to use, and the ratings will be correct for most cultures and circumstances with only slight variations.
Add up the LCU values of any of the following that you have experienced within the last year.
| Life Event Death of spouse Divorce Marital Separation Jail Term Death of a close family member Personal injury or illness Marriage Fired from job 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 a close friend Change to a different line of work Change in number of arguments with spouse Mortgage over $10 000 Foreclosure of mortgage or loan Change in responsibilities at work/home Child leaving home Trouble with relatives Outstanding personal achievement Spouse 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 Change in schools Change in recreation Change in religious 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 | LCU value 100 73 65 63 63 53 50 47 45 45 44 40 39 39 39 38 37 36 35 31 30 29 29 29 28 26 26 25 24 23 20 20 20 19 19 18 17 16 15 15 13 12 11 |
Your total LCU value shows how stressed you are and how likely it is that
you will suffer from a stress related disease.
If your score is:
less than 150-small risk
150-199-mild risk
200-299-moderate risk
greater than 300-major risk. There is a large chance that you will burn out and become ill
within the next year.