Stress Assessment and Management Techniques
Stress comes in all sorts of shapes and sizes, differs for each of us, we all respond to stress in diverse ways, acute and chronic stress have different effects, and the separation between them is often blurred. These and demographic influences make it difficult for scientists to agree on a definition of stress, much less measure it. There are hundreds of stress questionnaires, ranging from the Social Readjustment Rating Scale for periodic major life change events published by Holmes and Rahe over 40 years ago (with numerous revisions since then), to the Daily Hassles Scale that lists minor annoyances like fights with customers and family or being stuck in traffic that can occur several times a day. Others, like the Perceived Stress Scale and Profile of Mood States, assess the effects of stress, or are designed specifically for job stress, women, children, teenagers, the elderly, Type A behavior, depression, anger, anxiety etc. Many researchers and others have constructed stress quizzes, some of which are self-serving and very few, if any have been validated, so their value is questionable.