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A person suffers from stress when they believe their well-being is under threat. This causes psychological and biological strain. Stress measurement scales consist of methods used by health researchers and psychologists to detect illnesses in humans related to or caused by stress. Measuring stress is easier when psychologists use the most relevant scales. However, when considering external variables such as high blood pressure, it becomes trickier. Some of the scales used in measuring stress response are
Self-report scales (SRRS and Hassle and uplift scale).
Skin conductance response scale (SCR).
Holmes and Rahe (1967) developed the social readjustment rating scale (SRRS) to measure the link between symptoms of stress and life events out of 100. They used the records of 5000 patients to derive 43 life events that were a cause of stress symptoms. Around 400 patients were requested to rate the life events in terms of how much readjustment was required to adjust to a life event. For example, the death of a spouse = 100, marriage = 50, and minor law violations = 11.The psychologists added and averaged these ratings along with other individual life event scores to create the Life change unit (LCU) for each event. If the patient scored more on an LCU, they had higher chances of becoming ill due to their stress.
Kanner et al. (1981) defined hassles (daily, irritating, and distressing demands) and uplifts by comparing hassles with life events from the SRRS (Holmes and Rahe, 1967). The hassle scale consisted of 117 events that spanned across work, family, and friends. It was conducted on middle-aged participants over ten months. The participants had to rate the intensity of the hassles they experienced on a three-point scale.
The uplift scale consisted of 135 positive events such as having a good night’s sleep. The participants had to rate how often they experienced these events over the ten months. The researchers found that the hassles scale had a good chance of predicting psychological well-being changes. They were better at predicting this than the life events scores.
DeLongis et al. (1982) developed the Hassles and Uplift Scale (HSUP) to measure these daily hassles and stresses that affect a person’s attitude. Unlike the scales before it, this scale helped address the smaller scale hassles that affect a person’s daily life instead of the more serious life events.
DeLongis found that hassles correlate negatively with health reports. These can have a more significant, long-term effect on stress, more so than the aforementioned serious life events.
The hassles and uplifts scale may be a better predictor of the long-term effects that stress can have.
Let's see some of the advantages and disadvantages of the self-report scales.
+ The self-report scales can provide more detail of the patient’s account in terms of the intensity of the event and its link to stress. Since stress symptoms have individual differences that are catered in both the self-report scales, it increases the validity of results.
– The self-reporting scales fail to establish the cause-and-effect relationship between stress and life events as they are mainly linked with correlation studies. External variables like personality type or increased levels of cortisol (stress hormone) can affect the results.
– The self-report scales depend on the subjectivity of the patients. This reduces the reliability and replicability of the results since each participant will provide scores according to their understanding of the questionnaire.
– The results are prone to social desirability bias. The patients might not want to openly accept in the questionnaire that they are stressed and might need help.
Thanks to the advancement in scientific research, there are now several physiological ways to measure stress levels. Here are some examples of stress measurement instruments and tools:
Blood pressure monitor: it measures and displays systolic and diastolic blood pressure. When you’re stressed, your body releases stress hormones that affect the activity of your heart and blood vessels. Systolic reading measures the blood pressure in arteries when the heart is beating and diastolic reading measures the blood pressure in the arteries when the heart rests between beats. This measure can indicate high-stress levels.
Blood and urine tests: these tests measure the level of cortisol in the body. Cortisol is a stress hormone that prioritises certain functions, for instance, if you’re having a fight or flight response. Increased levels of cortisol in the body mean high levels of stress.
Skin conductance response scale: we will look at this scale in further detail below.
When using SCR to measure stress levels, scientists attach electrodes to the participant’s fingertips and they measure the skin’s resistance to electricity. High levels of SCR imply arousal of the autonomous nervous system which can be related to stress. When a person is stressed they are also likely to sweat more. Sweaty or damp skin is a better conductor of electricity and thus reduces the skin’s resistance to it. This can be determined by measuring the SCR when a person is relaxed and compared with the SCR levels of when the same person is seemingly under stress.
Let's see some of the advantages and disadvantages of the skin conductance response scale.
+ It is a cheap and scientific method to measure stress levels. It has high reliability as it can be replicated to produce similar results.
– SCR doesn't differentiate between different states of emotions. SCR can measure the intensity of the skin’s response to electricity. However, it cannot objectively differentiate if the response is due to just stress, nervousness, or happiness. For such details, researchers have to depend on self-report questionnaires.
– External variables can influence the readings of the SCR. For example, high alcohol consumption can cause more sweating as well as weather humidity. These can become misleading factors affecting the results of stress measurement.
– The participant’s internal variables can also mislead the reading. For example, their personality type (rigid and inflexible personality, type A, may always be anxious and stressed) or if the participant has been going through life-changing events for a long time.
Stress measurement scales consist of methods used by health researchers and scientists to detect illnesses in humans related to or caused by stress.
We can measure stress through self-report scales (SRRS and Hassle and uplift scale) and physiological tools (blood pressure monitor, blood and urine tests, and skin conductive response.)
Holmes and Rahe (1967) developed the social readjustment rating scale (SRRS) to measure the link between symptoms of stress and life events.
Kanner et al. (1981) developed a hassle and uplift scale.
High levels of SCR imply arousal of the autonomous nervous system which can be related to stress.
External variables can influence the readings of the SCR. These include elements such as high alcohol consumption and weather humidity, which can cause more sweating.
SCR is a cheap and scientific method to measure stress levels. It has high reliability as it can be replicated to produce similar results.
Self-report scales aren't reliable. The results might not be replicable since each participant will provide scores according to their understanding of the questionnaire.
Holmes and Rahe (1967) developed the social readjustment rating scale (SRRS) to measure the link between symptoms of stress and life events out of 100.
SRRS is a questionnaire measuring stress related to major life events. One limitation of SRRS is that items addressed in the questionnaire were slightly difficult to understand without the help of a tutor or researcher.
Stress is measured through various tools and equipment. Self-report scales and physiological tools such as skin conductance response are considered to be a better source of measuring stress.
Skin conductance response (SCR) is a stress test where electrodes are attached to the participant’s fingertips and the skin’s resistance to electricity is measured. High levels of SCR implies arousal of the autonomous nervous system which can be related to stress.
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