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Measuring depressive life experiences
Person. indkid. D~fl Vol. I I, No. 6. pp. 60S-513. Printed in Great Brttain. All rights reserved
MEASURING
1990 Copyright
DEPRESSIVE
LIFE
019143869 90 53.00 + 0.00 c 1990 Pergamon Press plc
EXPERIENCES
WILLIAME. SNELLJR’*, RAYMONDC. HAWKINSII? and SHARYNS. BELK” ‘Southeast Missouri State University, One University Plaza, Cape Girardeau, MO 63701 and ?he University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, U.S.A. (Received
2 October
1989)
Summary-During recent years psychologists have begun to investigate the variety of stressful life events that trigger distress. The present research extended this stress-distress model to the study of depressive life experiences through the development and validation of the Depressive Life Experiences Scale (DLES). The DLES is an objective self-report instrument designed to assess six depressogenic life experiences: (I) social exits, (2) interpersonal disharmony, (3) personal inertia, (4) personal frustrations, (5) personal inadequacies, and (6) others’ misfortunes. Reliability analyses provided evidence for the internal consistency of the items on the six DLES subscales, and other results revealed a gender distinct pattern of findings for several DLES subscales. In addition, five of the DLES subscales correlated positively with a measure of ‘negative’ life change, and predictive validity was demonstrated through a pattern of negative correlations between the DLES and several indices of life satisfaction. The importance of the Depressive Life Experiences Scale for the empirical and conceptual analysis of depression is discussed.
A number of psychologists have approached the study of physical and mental health from the perspective of a stress-distress relationship (Edwards & Endler, 1989; Lazarus, 1980; Lazarus & Launier, 1978). According to this perspective, susceptibility to physical and psychological problems increase in direct proportion to the amount of stressful life change experienced by people (Lefcourt, Miller, Ware & Sherk, 1981; Ormel, Sanderman & Stewart, 1988; Mullen & Suls, 1982; Wilcox, 1981). A review of the life stress literature indicates that investigators have tended to use one of two instruments in measuring stressful life experiences: (1) the Social Readjustment Rating Scale (SRRE) developed by Holmes and Rahe (1967) and (2) the Life Experiences Survey (LES) developed by Sarason, Johnson and Siegel (1978). The SRRE is a 43-item questionnaire designed to measure those stressful life events which people have experienced during the recent past (usually the previous 12 months). The SRRE events themselves vary in the amount of social readjustment that they require, and when summed they yield a total ‘life change’ score. Like the SRRE, the Life Experiences Survey is a self-report measure which permits respondents to indicate those stressful events which they have experienced during the recent past. Unlike the Social Readjustment Rating Scale, the Life Experiences Survey is structured so that respondents may rate both the impact and the desirability of those events which they have recently experienced. As a result of this procedure, it is possible to derive both a positive and a negative life change score (Sarason et al., 1978). Sarason and his colleagues have provided research evidence supporting the utility of the LES, finding that a recent history of negative life change is associated with poor academic performance, depression, anxiety, and both social nonconformity and discomfort. The use of the Life Experiences Survey (Sarason et al., 1978) and the Social Readjustment Rating Scale (Holmes & Rahe, 1967) have allowed investigators to take valuable steps in studying the topic of distress from a life change perspective. More recently, researchers have begun examining the effects of a relatively neglected aspect of stressful life experiences: everyday hassles and problems (Burks & Martin, 1985; Kanner, Coyne, Schaefer & Lazarus, 1981; DeLongis, Coyne, Dakof, Folkman & Lazarus, 1982; DeLongis, Folkman & Lazarus, 1988). In contrast to the major life changes measured by the SRRE and the LES, the ‘daily hassles’ instrument developed by Coyne, Lazarus and their colleagues was designed to assess life situations that are likely to be stressful over an extended period of time. Such experiences are considered to be ‘hassles’ and ‘problems’ in the sense that people usually encounter these stressors on a day-to-day basis (cf. Burks & Martin, 1985). All three of these instruments *To whom all correspondence
should be addressed. 605
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are concerned with measuring life change and hassles in a global, non-specific fashion. For example, the measurement procedures result in only a limited number of scores, one score for the SRRE measuring life change and two scores for the LES measuring positive and negative life change. Moreover, none of these instruments was intended to identify the types of stressors that generate specific types of distressful reactions (e.g. depression vs anger). The purpose of the present investigation was to examine a variety of stressful life experiences that are specific to depression (Beck, 1976; Beck, Ward, Mendelsohn, Mock & Erbaugh, 1967). Work in this area was pioneered by Paykel and his associates (Paykel, Myers, Dienelt, Klerman, Lindenthal & Pepper, 1969), and similar work has continued into present times (Pilkonis, Imber & Rubinsky, 1985; Roy, Breier, Doran & Pickar, 1985; Nezu & Ronan, 1985). Using a variety of instruments to measure stressful life experiences, this research has indicated that depression can be precipitated by a history of recent stressful events. In the present investigation it was felt that further insight into the nature of depression could be gained by examining the particular types of life experiences uniquely associated with depression, especially those experiences dealing with both major life events and everyday hassles. This was accomplished through the development of a measure of the Depressive Life Experiences Scale (DLES). The Depressive Life Experiences Scale was designed to assess the depressive life experiences found in a study by Snell, McDonald and Koch (1989). Snell et al. (1989) asked people to discuss the types of life experiences which trigger their feelings of depression. The content analysis results from that study were used to construct six DLES subscales in the present investigation. The first scale was labeled the social exits subscale, since it was designed to measure those experiences associated with the breakup, cessation, and absence of interpersonal relationships (e.g. the ending of an intimate, love relationship). The second subscale on the DLES, the interpersonal disharmony scale, was designed to measure those life experiences dealing with social conflict, disharmony, and friction (e.g. a critical judgment from another person). Whereas the above two scales concerned social inactivity and friction, the third scale was concerned with life experiences indicating personal inertia. More specifically, the items on this subscale were intended to measure depressive stress stemming from the individual inactivity and inertia (e.g. being in a dull or uninteresting situation). The fourth subscale on the Depressive Life Experiences Scale was labeled the personal jiustration scale. The items on this depressive stress subscale were selected because they had the common feature of demands, delay, and frustrations concerning one’s goal-directed activities (e.g. frustrated goals or desires). In contrast, the fifth scale was designed to measure those life experiences which deal with individual failures and personal resignation. One of the exemplary items on the personal inadequacy subscale read, ‘inadequate or stifled personal development; lack of personal fulfillment’. The sixth and final subscale on the Depressive Life Experiences Scale deals with others’ misfortunes. The common theme among the items on this subscale involves being exposed to the misfortunes, ill-luck, and unpleasant events that befall other individuals (e.g. others’ suffering and misfortunes). As with any new assessment instrument, several types of information are needed to establish its reliability and validity. Toward this end, the present study provided the following information for the Depressive Life Experiences Scale: reliability results (Cronbach a and test-retest), normative data, gender differences, and validity. METHOD Subjects
The Ss were 158 undergraduates enrolled in an upper-division psychology course at a large southwestern university in the United States. They participated in the research as one way of obtaining extra course credit. The data from several Ss were partially incomplete, thus resulting in variations in the number of Ss used in the analyses reported below. All Ss were guaranteed complete anonymity and confidentiality for their responses. Procedures and measures
The Ss were asked to complete the following measures: (1) the Depressive Life Experiences Scale (DLES; Snell et al., 1989), (2) the Life Experiences Survey (LES; Sarason et al., 1978), and (3) the
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‘life satisfaction’ section of the Coping Assessment Battery (CAB; Bugen & Hawkins, 198 1; Bugen, Berlinger & Hawkins, 1980; Hawkins, Bugen & Snell, 1982; Snell & Hawkins, 1985). Depressice Life Experiences Survey. The Depressive Life Experiences Scale is a self-administered questionnaire that allows respondents to indicate those depressive life experiences which they have recently experienced. The items on the DLES were selected on the basis of the results reported by Snell et al. (1989). These investigators had Ss discuss the types of events, experiences, hassles, and problems that depress them. Forty-eight experiences were discussed with sufficient frequency to warrant including them on a scale measuring depressive life experiences. In the Snell et al. (1989) investigation, three conceptual dimensions were found to characterize the 48 depressive experiences: (1) an interpersonal vs personal conflict dimension, (2) a social inactivity vs social friction dimension, and (3) a personal vs impersonal dimension. The DLES subscales used in the present investigation were derived from the quadrants which result when the three dimensions are crossed with each other (i.e. 2 x 2 x 2 = 8 possible subscales). Since two of the quadrants were not represented with depressive life experience items, six rather than eight subscales were included in the current version of the Depressive Life Experiences Scale. These six subscales assessed the following distinct categories of depressogenic experiences: (I) the social exits scale, with 5 items (e.g. SEPARATION: being separated from friends or loved ones), (2) the interpersonal disharmony scale, with 6 items (e.g. CRITICISM: a critical judgment from a person; someone finding fault with you or disapproving of you), (3) the personal inerria subscale, with 7 items (e.g. BOREDOM: being in a dull or uninteresting situation; experiencing a state of ennui), being (4) the personal frustrations scale, with 5 items (e.g. LACK OF PREPARATION: inadequately prepared or having made inadequate plans), (5) the personal inadequacies scale, with 6 items (e.g. LOSS OF FACE: committing some blunder or error, with attending loss of face) and (6) the others’ misfortunes scale, with 6 items (e.g. DEPRESSED PEOPLE: being exposed to sad and unhappy people; being around people feeling depressed). Items not assigned to specific scales were regarded as filler items. The Ss were asked to rate how frequently they had experienced the 48 depressive life experiences on the DLES during three time periods: the past three months, the past year, and the past 5 yr. A 5-point Likert scale with appropriate anchors was used to record their responses (blank = not at all; 1 = one time; 2 = two times; 3 = three times; 4 = four times; 5 = five or more times). After providing this ‘frequency of occurrence’ information, the Ss were then asked to indicate the depressive intensity of the 48 depressive experiences at the time of their occurrence. These ratings were made on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from extremely depressing (1) to nor at all depressing (5), later reversed-scored so that higher numbers corresponded to more intense depressive affect (i.e. depressive intensity). The frequency ratings for the items on each subscale were summed to create six (6) separate frequency measures. In addition, the depressive intensity ratings for the items on each subscale were summed to create six (6) separate intensity measures. The resulting frequency and intensity measures associated with each of the six subscales were also multiplied together to create an overall ‘impact score’ for each of the six subscales (i.e. frequency scores x intensity scores = impact scores). In summary, each of the six DLES subscales was scored so as to create a frequency, an intensity, and an impact score. Higher scores on these measures corresponded to (1) greater frequency of the depressive experiences, (2) more intense depressive distress, and (3) a more severe overall impact, respectively. Lzfe Experiences Survey. Sarason et al. (1978) developed the Life Experiences Survey (LES) as a measure of positive and negative life change. The LES is a 57-item self-report measure on which the respondents were asked to indicate the events they had experienced during the past year. Additionally, they were asked to rate on a 7-point scale the desirability of the events that they had experienced, ranging from ‘extremely negative’ (- 3), to ‘no impact’ (0), to ‘extremely positive’ (+ 3). The impact ratings of those events designated as positive by the Ss were summed to provide a positive life change score. Negative life change scores were computed by summing the impact ratings of these events experienced as negative by the Ss. Higher scores on the negative (positive) life change subscale corresponded to more negative (positive) life change in the Ss’ lives. Coping Assessment Battery. The Coping Assessment Battery (CAB; Bugen & Hawkins, 1981; Bugen et al., 1980; Hawkins et al., 1982) contains a ‘quality-of-life’ section with five satisfaction subscales. These subscales deal with the amount of job, leisure, love, health, and financial
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Table I. Reliability results for the Depressive Life Experiences Scale Cronbach I
Test-retest
3 months 1 Yr 5 Yr
0.56 0.62 0.60 0.68
0.61 0.51
3 months 1 Yr 5 Yr
0.70 0.67 0.60 0.68
0.60 0.47
3 months 1 Yr 5 Yr
0.59 0.66 0.67 0.75
0.66 0.46
3 months 1 Y’ 5 Yr
0.68 0.62 0.67 0.68
0.63 0.55
3 months I Yr 5 Yr
0.69 0.69 0.76 0.79
0.60 0.37
3 months 1 Yr 5 Y’
0.66 0.70 0.68 0.72
0.6 I
DLES subscales Social Exits (I) Frequency (2) Frequency (3) Frequency (4) Depressive Intensity Interpersonal disharmony (I) Frequency (2) Frequency (3) Frequency (4) Depressive Intensity Personal Inertia (I) Frequency (2) Frequency (3) Frequency (4) Depressive Intensity Personal Frustration (I) Frequency (2) Frequency (3) Frequency (4) Depressive Intensity Personal Inadequacy (I) Frequency (2) Frequency (3) Frequency (4) Depressive Intensity Others’ Misfortunes (I) Frequency (2) Frequency (3) .- Frequency ._. (4) Depresswe Intenstty
-
0.57
n = 78 for test-retest analyses; n = 1ISfor 3 month time period; n = I13 for I yr time period; n = 107 for 5 yr time period; and n = 122 for depressive intensity.
satisfaction that people report in their lives. Ss responded to the items on these satisfaction subscales using a 5-point Likert scale (0 = not true of me/4 = true of me). Higher scores on the subscales corresponded to higher levels of satisfaction with the job, leisure, love, health, and financial aspects of life. RESULTS Reliability of the DLES
Two types of reliability information were collected in the present research. Cronbach a and test-retest coefficients for the frequency and intensity components of the subscales on the Depressive Life Experiences Scale are shown in Table 1. There was a 4 week time interval between the initial test session and the retest session. An inspection of Table 1 indicates that the Cronbach a ranged from a low of 0.56 to a high of 0.79 (M = 0.67). Based on these results, the subscales on the DLES have a sufficient degree of internal consistency to warrant their use in future research on depressive life experiences. Additionally, it can be seen in Table 1 that most of the test-retest results associated with the DLES were modest in magnitude, as determined by Pearson product-moment correlations. Test-retest correlations for the frequency measures ranged from a low of 0.60 to a high of 0.66 (all Ps < 0.05); for the impact measures, the test-retest correlations ranged from a low of 0.37 to a high of 0.57 (all Ps < 0.05). These results suggest that the Depressive Life Experiences Scale is an internally reliable assessment instrument, with moderate stability across time. However, it is important to note that the actual test-retest reliabilities of the DLES may be underestimated by this type of analysis. Sarason et al. (1978) have argued that test-retest coefficients associated with life experience measures tend to underestimate the actual reliability of such measures, given that during the time interval between the test-retest sessions individuals may experience a variety of new life experiences reflected in their retest responses. Normative data and gender differences
The next set of findings with the Depressive Life Experiences Scale (DLES) was concerned with reporting general information about the Ss’ responses to this assessment tool (i.e. normative data). This information is reported for both women and men (cf. Amenson & Lewinsohn, 1981).
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Table 2. Means and standard deviations on the DLES for males and females DLES subscales Event Frequency (3 months) Social Exits Interpersonal Disharmony Personal Inertia Personal Frustration Personal Inadequacy Others’ Misfortunes Event Frequency (I yr) Social Exits Interpersonal Disharmony Personal Inertia Personal Frustration Personal Inadequacy Others’ Misfortunes Event Frequency (5 yr) Social Exits Interpersonal Disharmony Personal Inertia Personal Frustration Personal Inadequacy Others’ Misfortunes Depressive Intensity Social Exits Interpersonal Disharmony Personal Inertia Personal Frustration Personal Inadequacy Others’ Misfortunes
Males
Females 9.64 9.13
F( I .95)
7.80 8.96 12.84 10.08 8.82 14.88
12.90 9.57 12.96
2.72
IO.16 13.44 17.52 14.20 12.44 19.36
13.58 13.29 19.50 16.31 13.92 17.78
7.86**
12.60 IS.96 18.24 IS.32 15.96 18.20
12.47 12.81 17.92 13.60 12.72 IS.57
14.36 15.24 13.20 11.40 IS.16 II.88
16.60 14.44 16.14 12.57 IS.01 12.57
2.98
IS.18
For the frequency subscales, higher scores indicate greater exposure to the depressive experiences, and for the intensity subscales higher scores correspond to greater affective intensity. lP < 0.05; l*f < 0.01.
Frequency results. Frequency and intensity scores were obtained on the six DLES subscales for three distinct time periods: (1) the past 3 months, (2) the past 12 months, and (3) the past 5 yr. Table 2 presents the means and standard deviations for males and females on each of these measures, and the univariate F tests for the gender analysis. The MANOVA effect for gender was highly significant, Wilk’s I = 0.58, F(24,72) = 2.17, P c 0.007. As can be seen in Table 2, the univariate ANOVA’s revealed that (1) females reported a significantly greater frequency (M = 12.90) of depressogenic life experiences associated with personal frustration for the 3 month period than did males (M = 10.00); (2) females reported a significantly greater number (M = 13.58) of depressive life experiences associated with social exits than did males (M = 10.16) for the 1 yr period; (3) males (M = 15.96) reported a significantly greater number of depressive life experiences associated with interpersonal disharmony than did women (M = 12.81) for the 5 yr period; and (4) females (M = 16.14) reported a significantly higher degree of depressive intensity associated with life experiences characterized by personal inertia than did males (M = 13.20) for the 5 yr period. Intensity results. As described earlier, both frequency and intensity scores were multiplied together to generate ‘impact’ scores. This section presents normative data for women and men on the impact scores associated with the 12-month time interval (i.e. the time period that most stress studies examine). Table 3 presents the relevant means and standard deviations. The MANOVA effect for gender was highly significant, Wilk’s 1 = 0.81, F(6, 105) = 4.18, P < 0.00082. Two of the univariate ANOVAs were also significant: females reported higher depressive impact scores associated with social exits (M = 220.83) and personal inertia (M = 313.64) than did males (M = 147.50 and M = 224.14, respectively). Validity of the DLES
The validity of the Depressive Life Experiences Scale was examined by studying its relationship to the Life Experiences Survey (LES; Sarason et al., 1978), a measure of both positive and negative life change. Positive correlations were expected between the negative life change subscale and the DLES subscales, since both measures concern ‘negative’, undesirable life experiences. Table 4 presents the correlations between the DLES and the Life Experiences Survey. As an inspection of this table indicates, the positive life change subscale from the LES was unrelated to
WILLIAM E. SNELL JR et al.
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Table 3. Means and standard deviations on the DLES for males and females Depressive Life Experiences Impact subscales
Males (n = 28)
Females (n = 84)
Social Exits
147.50 (96.47) i96.11' (118.12) 224.14 (121.6) 163.36 (109.33) 191.43 (147.80) 215.50 (103.93)
220.83 (139.65) ‘187.31’ (130.19) 313.64 (196.05) 197.60 (126.45) 207.32 (147.87) 221.35 ( 139.49)
Interpersonal
Disharmony
Personal Inertia Personal Frustration Personal Inadequacy Others’ Misfortunes Higher scores correspond ‘P < 0.05.
(JIO) 4.64* Cl 5.16. 1.64
to a greater impact for the depressive experimceJ.
the six subscales on the Depressive Life Experiences Scale. As predicted, significant correlations were obtained between the negative life change subscale of the LES and five of the DLES subscales (i.e. the social exits, the interpersonal disharmony, the personal inertia, the personal frustration, and the person inadequancy subscales). The pattern of these results thus supports the view that the Depressive Life Experiences Scale is a measure of negative life experiences, as indicated by its relationship with the negative life change subscale from the Life Experiences Survey (LES; Sarason et al., 1978). Li$e satisfaction and the DLES In order to provide additional evidence for the validity of the DLES, its relationship with a measure of life satisfaction was examined. If the subscales on the Depressive Life Experiences Scale actually do measure depressive life stress, then they should correlate in a negative direction with life satisfaction measures. To examine this possibility, the relationship between the DLES and the Life Satisfaction section of the Coping Assessment Battery (Bugen & Hawkins, 1981; Bugen et al., 1980) was examined. The correlations are presented in Table 5. An inspection of the correlations in this table reveals that (1) job satisfaction ratings were negatively correlated with the interpersonal disharmony subscale; (2) leisure satisfaction ratings were negatively correlated with the following subscales on the DLES: social exits, interpersonal disharmony, personal inertia, personal frustration, personal inadequancy, and others’ misfortunes; and (3) love satisfaction ratings were negatively correlated with the social exits, personal inertia, personal frustration, and personal inadequacy subscales. There were no significnat correlations between the financial satisfaction measure and any of the subscales on the Depressive Life Experiences Scale. Overall, these results confirm the expectation that depressive life experiences are associated with diminished job, leisure, love, and health satisfaction. Table 4. Correlations between the Life Experiences Survey and the DLES Life Experiences Survey DLES subscales Social Exits Interpersonal
Disharmony
Personal Inertia Personal Frustration Personal Inadequacy Others’ Misfortunes
Positive change
Negative change
-0.01 (IlO) -0.04 (110) 0.08 (III) 0.02 (109) 0.00 (102) 0.02 (109)
0.35*** (110) 0.20’ (110) 0.28*** OII) 0.33*** (109) 0.27.’ (102) 0.16 (109)
n per correlation is shown in parentheses. Higher DLES scores indicate greater exposure to the depressive experiences associated with each subscale. Higher LES scores correspond to more positive and negative life change. lP < 0.05; l*P < 0.01; l*P c 0.005.
Depressive
life experiences
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Table 5. Correlations between the DLES and Quality-of-Life Depressive Life EXpCliCW5s Impact subscales Social Exits Interpersonal Disharmony Personal Inertia Personal Frustration Personal Inadequacy Others’ Misfortunes
Indicators
QLI satisfaction subscales Job -0.07 (99) -0.18’ (99) -0.11 (100) -0.01 (99) -0.03 (92) -0.13 (98)
Leisure -0.18’ (112) -0.18’ (112) -0.23** (113) -0.31*” (Ill) -0.22’ (103) 0.06 (111)
Love
Health
Finances
-0.15 (108) -0.27** (108) -0.l.i (109) -0.13 (107) -0.14 (101) -0.01 (107)
-0.19 (Ill) -0.13 (111) -0.28*“* (112) -0.25*** (1101 -0.25** (102) -0.02 (110)
0.03 (110) -0.07 (110) -0.02 (111) 0.04 (109) -0.01 (101) 0.00 (109)
n per correlation is shown in parentheses. Higher DLES scores correspond to a more stressful exposure to the depressive experiences associated with each subscale. Higher scores on the QLI correspond to more satisfaction with that aspect of life. lf < 0.05: l*P < 0.01; l**p < 0.005.
DISCUSSION
The findings reported in this article provide evidence that the Depressive Life Experiences Scale can be a useful research tool for the investigation of depressive life experiences. This objective self-report instrument contains separate subscales designed to measure six types of life events and experiences which evoke feelings of depression: social exits, interpersonal disharmony, personal inertia, personal frustration, personal inadequacy, and others’ misfortunes. The research evidence indicated that the subscales on the DLES were adequately reliable over an interval of 4 weeks, and that they have sufficient internal consistency to justify their use in research dealing with depression and depressive life experiences. Support for the validity of the Depressive Life Experiences Scale as a measure of ‘negative’ life experiences was provided by the finding that five of the six DLES subscales were significantly related to the negative life change scale on the Life Experiences Survey (LES; Sarason et al., 1978). In addition, it was found that depressive life experiences were significantly related in a negative direction with a number of life satisfaction scales (Bugen & Hawkins, 1981). These findings are consistent with previous studies showing a positive relationship between both stressors and various types of health problems (DeLongis et al., 1988; Nezu & Ronan, 1985). Other results reported in the present investigation also indicated that women reported more depressive stress than men for those life experiences dealing with social exits and personal inertia, but that men reported more depressogenic life experiences associated with interpersonal disharmony. These findings need to be considered within the context of previous approaches to gender and depression. While some studies do report that women report more symptoms of depression than do men (e.g. Radloff, 1975), Newmann (1984) has recently shown that these studies have used depression instruments that confound sadness with depression, and that when these two facets of dysphoria are studied separately gender differences in depression become trivial in nature (cf. Nolen-Hoeksema, 1987). However, in a related investigation focusing on gender vulnerability to stressful life experiences (rather than depressive symptomology), Newmann (1986) did find that women were more likely to report greater stress associated with social isolation. This finding is consistent with the present results indicating that females, relative to males, report more depressogenic experiences associated with social exits. Further research is needed, however, to gain insight into the present finding that males suffer more hardships associated with interpersonal disharmony than do females. While the present findings were interpreted as evidence for the multidimensional nature of depressive life experiences and their impact on various aspects of life satisfaction, it is clear that the relationships themselves are correlational in nature. As such, it is possible to question whether the experience of depressive stress is an antecedent of distress, simply a consequence, or perhaps only an epiphenomenon. One should thus be cautious about drawing any cause-effect conclusions based on this research (Depue & Monroe, 1986). A conclusive, unambiguous resolution of this issue must await the outcome of controlled longitudinal studies. None the less, there is suggestive
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evidence reported in other investigations, underscoring the causal role of stressful life experiences in people’s susceptibility to physical problems (Kobasa, 1979; Kobasa, Maddi & Kahn, 1981). In conclusion, the Depressive Life Experiences Scale would seem to be a useful instrument to employ in future studies aimed at identifying precipitating variables associated with depression (Ilfeld, 1977; Lewinsohn & Talkington, 1979; Oatley & Bolton, 1985). One of the main advantages of the DLES is that the subscales allow researchers and practitioners to obtain individualized ratings of both the frequency and the intensity of several types of depressive life experiences. In research currently underway, we are examining the impact of depressive life experiences and ‘cognitive-distortion’ tendencies on people’s feelings of chronic depression (Beck et al., 1967). It is anticipated that chronic depression will be associated with exposure to depressive life experiences, primarily among those individuals prone to unrealistic thinking (Denney & Frisch, 1981; Griper, Olinger & Air, 1989; Olinger, Kuiper & Shaw, 1987). Acknowledgemenrs~ratitude is extended to Dora Weaver for her helpful comments on an earlier version of this article. Portions of these data were presented at the annual meeting of the Southwestern Psychological Association, San Antonio, Texas. U.S.A.
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Lazarus, R. S. (1980). The stress and coping paradigm In Eisdorfer, C., Cohen, D. & Kleinman, A. (Eds), Conceprualmodels for psychopathology (pp. 173-209). New York: Spectrum. Lazarus, R. S. & Launier, R. (1978). Stress-related transactions between person and environment. In Pervin, I. A. & Lewis, M. (Eds), Perspectives in interactional psychology (pp. 287-327). New York: Plenum Press. Lefcourt, H. M., Miller, R. S., Ware, E. E. & Sherk, D. (1981). Locus of control as a modifier of the relationship between stressors and moods. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 4I, 357-369. Lewinsohn, P. M. & Talkington, J. (1979). Studies on the measurement of unpleasant events and relations with depression. Applied Psychological
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Newmann, J. P. (1986). Gender, life strains, and depression. Journal of Healrh and Social Behavior, 27, 161-178.
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Nezu, A. M. & Ronan, G. F. (1985). Life stress, current problems, problem solving, and depressive symptoms: An integrative model. Journal of Consulring and Clinical Psychology, 53, 693-697. Nolen-Hoeksema, S. (1987). Sex differences in unipolar depression: Evidence and theory. Psychological Bulletin, IOI, 259-282.
Oatley, K. & Bohon, W. (1985). A social-cognitive theory of depression in reaction to life events. Psychological Review, 9.2, 372-388.
Olinger, L. J., Kuiper, N. A. & Shaw, B. F. (1987). Dysfunctional attitudes and stressful life experiences: An interactive model of depression. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 11, 2M. Ormel, J., Sanderman, R. & Stewart, R. (1988). Personality as modifier of the life event-distress relationship: A longitudinal structural equation model. Personality and Individual Differences, 9, 973-982. Paykel, E., Myers, J., Dienelt, M., Klerman, G., Lindenthal, J. & Pepper, M. (1969). Life events and depression. Archives of General Psychiatry, 21, 753-760.
Pilkonis, P. A., Imber, S. D. & Rubinsky, P. (1985). Dimensions of life stress in psychiatric patients. Journal of Human Stress, xx, 5-10.
Radloff, L. S. (1975). Sex differences in depression: The effects of occupation and marital status. Sex Roles, I, 249-265. Roy, A., Breier, A., Doran, A. R. & Pickar, D. (1985). Life events in depression: Relationships to subtypes. Journal of Affectice Disorders, 9, 143-148.
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MEASURING
1990 Copyright
DEPRESSIVE
LIFE
019143869 90 53.00 + 0.00 c 1990 Pergamon Press plc
EXPERIENCES
WILLIAME. SNELLJR’*, RAYMONDC. HAWKINSII? and SHARYNS. BELK” ‘Southeast Missouri State University, One University Plaza, Cape Girardeau, MO 63701 and ?he University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, U.S.A. (Received
2 October
1989)
Summary-During recent years psychologists have begun to investigate the variety of stressful life events that trigger distress. The present research extended this stress-distress model to the study of depressive life experiences through the development and validation of the Depressive Life Experiences Scale (DLES). The DLES is an objective self-report instrument designed to assess six depressogenic life experiences: (I) social exits, (2) interpersonal disharmony, (3) personal inertia, (4) personal frustrations, (5) personal inadequacies, and (6) others’ misfortunes. Reliability analyses provided evidence for the internal consistency of the items on the six DLES subscales, and other results revealed a gender distinct pattern of findings for several DLES subscales. In addition, five of the DLES subscales correlated positively with a measure of ‘negative’ life change, and predictive validity was demonstrated through a pattern of negative correlations between the DLES and several indices of life satisfaction. The importance of the Depressive Life Experiences Scale for the empirical and conceptual analysis of depression is discussed.
A number of psychologists have approached the study of physical and mental health from the perspective of a stress-distress relationship (Edwards & Endler, 1989; Lazarus, 1980; Lazarus & Launier, 1978). According to this perspective, susceptibility to physical and psychological problems increase in direct proportion to the amount of stressful life change experienced by people (Lefcourt, Miller, Ware & Sherk, 1981; Ormel, Sanderman & Stewart, 1988; Mullen & Suls, 1982; Wilcox, 1981). A review of the life stress literature indicates that investigators have tended to use one of two instruments in measuring stressful life experiences: (1) the Social Readjustment Rating Scale (SRRE) developed by Holmes and Rahe (1967) and (2) the Life Experiences Survey (LES) developed by Sarason, Johnson and Siegel (1978). The SRRE is a 43-item questionnaire designed to measure those stressful life events which people have experienced during the recent past (usually the previous 12 months). The SRRE events themselves vary in the amount of social readjustment that they require, and when summed they yield a total ‘life change’ score. Like the SRRE, the Life Experiences Survey is a self-report measure which permits respondents to indicate those stressful events which they have experienced during the recent past. Unlike the Social Readjustment Rating Scale, the Life Experiences Survey is structured so that respondents may rate both the impact and the desirability of those events which they have recently experienced. As a result of this procedure, it is possible to derive both a positive and a negative life change score (Sarason et al., 1978). Sarason and his colleagues have provided research evidence supporting the utility of the LES, finding that a recent history of negative life change is associated with poor academic performance, depression, anxiety, and both social nonconformity and discomfort. The use of the Life Experiences Survey (Sarason et al., 1978) and the Social Readjustment Rating Scale (Holmes & Rahe, 1967) have allowed investigators to take valuable steps in studying the topic of distress from a life change perspective. More recently, researchers have begun examining the effects of a relatively neglected aspect of stressful life experiences: everyday hassles and problems (Burks & Martin, 1985; Kanner, Coyne, Schaefer & Lazarus, 1981; DeLongis, Coyne, Dakof, Folkman & Lazarus, 1982; DeLongis, Folkman & Lazarus, 1988). In contrast to the major life changes measured by the SRRE and the LES, the ‘daily hassles’ instrument developed by Coyne, Lazarus and their colleagues was designed to assess life situations that are likely to be stressful over an extended period of time. Such experiences are considered to be ‘hassles’ and ‘problems’ in the sense that people usually encounter these stressors on a day-to-day basis (cf. Burks & Martin, 1985). All three of these instruments *To whom all correspondence
should be addressed. 605
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are concerned with measuring life change and hassles in a global, non-specific fashion. For example, the measurement procedures result in only a limited number of scores, one score for the SRRE measuring life change and two scores for the LES measuring positive and negative life change. Moreover, none of these instruments was intended to identify the types of stressors that generate specific types of distressful reactions (e.g. depression vs anger). The purpose of the present investigation was to examine a variety of stressful life experiences that are specific to depression (Beck, 1976; Beck, Ward, Mendelsohn, Mock & Erbaugh, 1967). Work in this area was pioneered by Paykel and his associates (Paykel, Myers, Dienelt, Klerman, Lindenthal & Pepper, 1969), and similar work has continued into present times (Pilkonis, Imber & Rubinsky, 1985; Roy, Breier, Doran & Pickar, 1985; Nezu & Ronan, 1985). Using a variety of instruments to measure stressful life experiences, this research has indicated that depression can be precipitated by a history of recent stressful events. In the present investigation it was felt that further insight into the nature of depression could be gained by examining the particular types of life experiences uniquely associated with depression, especially those experiences dealing with both major life events and everyday hassles. This was accomplished through the development of a measure of the Depressive Life Experiences Scale (DLES). The Depressive Life Experiences Scale was designed to assess the depressive life experiences found in a study by Snell, McDonald and Koch (1989). Snell et al. (1989) asked people to discuss the types of life experiences which trigger their feelings of depression. The content analysis results from that study were used to construct six DLES subscales in the present investigation. The first scale was labeled the social exits subscale, since it was designed to measure those experiences associated with the breakup, cessation, and absence of interpersonal relationships (e.g. the ending of an intimate, love relationship). The second subscale on the DLES, the interpersonal disharmony scale, was designed to measure those life experiences dealing with social conflict, disharmony, and friction (e.g. a critical judgment from another person). Whereas the above two scales concerned social inactivity and friction, the third scale was concerned with life experiences indicating personal inertia. More specifically, the items on this subscale were intended to measure depressive stress stemming from the individual inactivity and inertia (e.g. being in a dull or uninteresting situation). The fourth subscale on the Depressive Life Experiences Scale was labeled the personal jiustration scale. The items on this depressive stress subscale were selected because they had the common feature of demands, delay, and frustrations concerning one’s goal-directed activities (e.g. frustrated goals or desires). In contrast, the fifth scale was designed to measure those life experiences which deal with individual failures and personal resignation. One of the exemplary items on the personal inadequacy subscale read, ‘inadequate or stifled personal development; lack of personal fulfillment’. The sixth and final subscale on the Depressive Life Experiences Scale deals with others’ misfortunes. The common theme among the items on this subscale involves being exposed to the misfortunes, ill-luck, and unpleasant events that befall other individuals (e.g. others’ suffering and misfortunes). As with any new assessment instrument, several types of information are needed to establish its reliability and validity. Toward this end, the present study provided the following information for the Depressive Life Experiences Scale: reliability results (Cronbach a and test-retest), normative data, gender differences, and validity. METHOD Subjects
The Ss were 158 undergraduates enrolled in an upper-division psychology course at a large southwestern university in the United States. They participated in the research as one way of obtaining extra course credit. The data from several Ss were partially incomplete, thus resulting in variations in the number of Ss used in the analyses reported below. All Ss were guaranteed complete anonymity and confidentiality for their responses. Procedures and measures
The Ss were asked to complete the following measures: (1) the Depressive Life Experiences Scale (DLES; Snell et al., 1989), (2) the Life Experiences Survey (LES; Sarason et al., 1978), and (3) the
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‘life satisfaction’ section of the Coping Assessment Battery (CAB; Bugen & Hawkins, 198 1; Bugen, Berlinger & Hawkins, 1980; Hawkins, Bugen & Snell, 1982; Snell & Hawkins, 1985). Depressice Life Experiences Survey. The Depressive Life Experiences Scale is a self-administered questionnaire that allows respondents to indicate those depressive life experiences which they have recently experienced. The items on the DLES were selected on the basis of the results reported by Snell et al. (1989). These investigators had Ss discuss the types of events, experiences, hassles, and problems that depress them. Forty-eight experiences were discussed with sufficient frequency to warrant including them on a scale measuring depressive life experiences. In the Snell et al. (1989) investigation, three conceptual dimensions were found to characterize the 48 depressive experiences: (1) an interpersonal vs personal conflict dimension, (2) a social inactivity vs social friction dimension, and (3) a personal vs impersonal dimension. The DLES subscales used in the present investigation were derived from the quadrants which result when the three dimensions are crossed with each other (i.e. 2 x 2 x 2 = 8 possible subscales). Since two of the quadrants were not represented with depressive life experience items, six rather than eight subscales were included in the current version of the Depressive Life Experiences Scale. These six subscales assessed the following distinct categories of depressogenic experiences: (I) the social exits scale, with 5 items (e.g. SEPARATION: being separated from friends or loved ones), (2) the interpersonal disharmony scale, with 6 items (e.g. CRITICISM: a critical judgment from a person; someone finding fault with you or disapproving of you), (3) the personal inerria subscale, with 7 items (e.g. BOREDOM: being in a dull or uninteresting situation; experiencing a state of ennui), being (4) the personal frustrations scale, with 5 items (e.g. LACK OF PREPARATION: inadequately prepared or having made inadequate plans), (5) the personal inadequacies scale, with 6 items (e.g. LOSS OF FACE: committing some blunder or error, with attending loss of face) and (6) the others’ misfortunes scale, with 6 items (e.g. DEPRESSED PEOPLE: being exposed to sad and unhappy people; being around people feeling depressed). Items not assigned to specific scales were regarded as filler items. The Ss were asked to rate how frequently they had experienced the 48 depressive life experiences on the DLES during three time periods: the past three months, the past year, and the past 5 yr. A 5-point Likert scale with appropriate anchors was used to record their responses (blank = not at all; 1 = one time; 2 = two times; 3 = three times; 4 = four times; 5 = five or more times). After providing this ‘frequency of occurrence’ information, the Ss were then asked to indicate the depressive intensity of the 48 depressive experiences at the time of their occurrence. These ratings were made on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from extremely depressing (1) to nor at all depressing (5), later reversed-scored so that higher numbers corresponded to more intense depressive affect (i.e. depressive intensity). The frequency ratings for the items on each subscale were summed to create six (6) separate frequency measures. In addition, the depressive intensity ratings for the items on each subscale were summed to create six (6) separate intensity measures. The resulting frequency and intensity measures associated with each of the six subscales were also multiplied together to create an overall ‘impact score’ for each of the six subscales (i.e. frequency scores x intensity scores = impact scores). In summary, each of the six DLES subscales was scored so as to create a frequency, an intensity, and an impact score. Higher scores on these measures corresponded to (1) greater frequency of the depressive experiences, (2) more intense depressive distress, and (3) a more severe overall impact, respectively. Lzfe Experiences Survey. Sarason et al. (1978) developed the Life Experiences Survey (LES) as a measure of positive and negative life change. The LES is a 57-item self-report measure on which the respondents were asked to indicate the events they had experienced during the past year. Additionally, they were asked to rate on a 7-point scale the desirability of the events that they had experienced, ranging from ‘extremely negative’ (- 3), to ‘no impact’ (0), to ‘extremely positive’ (+ 3). The impact ratings of those events designated as positive by the Ss were summed to provide a positive life change score. Negative life change scores were computed by summing the impact ratings of these events experienced as negative by the Ss. Higher scores on the negative (positive) life change subscale corresponded to more negative (positive) life change in the Ss’ lives. Coping Assessment Battery. The Coping Assessment Battery (CAB; Bugen & Hawkins, 1981; Bugen et al., 1980; Hawkins et al., 1982) contains a ‘quality-of-life’ section with five satisfaction subscales. These subscales deal with the amount of job, leisure, love, health, and financial
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Table I. Reliability results for the Depressive Life Experiences Scale Cronbach I
Test-retest
3 months 1 Yr 5 Yr
0.56 0.62 0.60 0.68
0.61 0.51
3 months 1 Yr 5 Yr
0.70 0.67 0.60 0.68
0.60 0.47
3 months 1 Yr 5 Yr
0.59 0.66 0.67 0.75
0.66 0.46
3 months 1 Y’ 5 Yr
0.68 0.62 0.67 0.68
0.63 0.55
3 months I Yr 5 Yr
0.69 0.69 0.76 0.79
0.60 0.37
3 months 1 Yr 5 Y’
0.66 0.70 0.68 0.72
0.6 I
DLES subscales Social Exits (I) Frequency (2) Frequency (3) Frequency (4) Depressive Intensity Interpersonal disharmony (I) Frequency (2) Frequency (3) Frequency (4) Depressive Intensity Personal Inertia (I) Frequency (2) Frequency (3) Frequency (4) Depressive Intensity Personal Frustration (I) Frequency (2) Frequency (3) Frequency (4) Depressive Intensity Personal Inadequacy (I) Frequency (2) Frequency (3) Frequency (4) Depressive Intensity Others’ Misfortunes (I) Frequency (2) Frequency (3) .- Frequency ._. (4) Depresswe Intenstty
-
0.57
n = 78 for test-retest analyses; n = 1ISfor 3 month time period; n = I13 for I yr time period; n = 107 for 5 yr time period; and n = 122 for depressive intensity.
satisfaction that people report in their lives. Ss responded to the items on these satisfaction subscales using a 5-point Likert scale (0 = not true of me/4 = true of me). Higher scores on the subscales corresponded to higher levels of satisfaction with the job, leisure, love, health, and financial aspects of life. RESULTS Reliability of the DLES
Two types of reliability information were collected in the present research. Cronbach a and test-retest coefficients for the frequency and intensity components of the subscales on the Depressive Life Experiences Scale are shown in Table 1. There was a 4 week time interval between the initial test session and the retest session. An inspection of Table 1 indicates that the Cronbach a ranged from a low of 0.56 to a high of 0.79 (M = 0.67). Based on these results, the subscales on the DLES have a sufficient degree of internal consistency to warrant their use in future research on depressive life experiences. Additionally, it can be seen in Table 1 that most of the test-retest results associated with the DLES were modest in magnitude, as determined by Pearson product-moment correlations. Test-retest correlations for the frequency measures ranged from a low of 0.60 to a high of 0.66 (all Ps < 0.05); for the impact measures, the test-retest correlations ranged from a low of 0.37 to a high of 0.57 (all Ps < 0.05). These results suggest that the Depressive Life Experiences Scale is an internally reliable assessment instrument, with moderate stability across time. However, it is important to note that the actual test-retest reliabilities of the DLES may be underestimated by this type of analysis. Sarason et al. (1978) have argued that test-retest coefficients associated with life experience measures tend to underestimate the actual reliability of such measures, given that during the time interval between the test-retest sessions individuals may experience a variety of new life experiences reflected in their retest responses. Normative data and gender differences
The next set of findings with the Depressive Life Experiences Scale (DLES) was concerned with reporting general information about the Ss’ responses to this assessment tool (i.e. normative data). This information is reported for both women and men (cf. Amenson & Lewinsohn, 1981).
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Table 2. Means and standard deviations on the DLES for males and females DLES subscales Event Frequency (3 months) Social Exits Interpersonal Disharmony Personal Inertia Personal Frustration Personal Inadequacy Others’ Misfortunes Event Frequency (I yr) Social Exits Interpersonal Disharmony Personal Inertia Personal Frustration Personal Inadequacy Others’ Misfortunes Event Frequency (5 yr) Social Exits Interpersonal Disharmony Personal Inertia Personal Frustration Personal Inadequacy Others’ Misfortunes Depressive Intensity Social Exits Interpersonal Disharmony Personal Inertia Personal Frustration Personal Inadequacy Others’ Misfortunes
Males
Females 9.64 9.13
F( I .95)
7.80 8.96 12.84 10.08 8.82 14.88
12.90 9.57 12.96
2.72
IO.16 13.44 17.52 14.20 12.44 19.36
13.58 13.29 19.50 16.31 13.92 17.78
7.86**
12.60 IS.96 18.24 IS.32 15.96 18.20
12.47 12.81 17.92 13.60 12.72 IS.57
14.36 15.24 13.20 11.40 IS.16 II.88
16.60 14.44 16.14 12.57 IS.01 12.57
2.98
IS.18
For the frequency subscales, higher scores indicate greater exposure to the depressive experiences, and for the intensity subscales higher scores correspond to greater affective intensity. lP < 0.05; l*f < 0.01.
Frequency results. Frequency and intensity scores were obtained on the six DLES subscales for three distinct time periods: (1) the past 3 months, (2) the past 12 months, and (3) the past 5 yr. Table 2 presents the means and standard deviations for males and females on each of these measures, and the univariate F tests for the gender analysis. The MANOVA effect for gender was highly significant, Wilk’s I = 0.58, F(24,72) = 2.17, P c 0.007. As can be seen in Table 2, the univariate ANOVA’s revealed that (1) females reported a significantly greater frequency (M = 12.90) of depressogenic life experiences associated with personal frustration for the 3 month period than did males (M = 10.00); (2) females reported a significantly greater number (M = 13.58) of depressive life experiences associated with social exits than did males (M = 10.16) for the 1 yr period; (3) males (M = 15.96) reported a significantly greater number of depressive life experiences associated with interpersonal disharmony than did women (M = 12.81) for the 5 yr period; and (4) females (M = 16.14) reported a significantly higher degree of depressive intensity associated with life experiences characterized by personal inertia than did males (M = 13.20) for the 5 yr period. Intensity results. As described earlier, both frequency and intensity scores were multiplied together to generate ‘impact’ scores. This section presents normative data for women and men on the impact scores associated with the 12-month time interval (i.e. the time period that most stress studies examine). Table 3 presents the relevant means and standard deviations. The MANOVA effect for gender was highly significant, Wilk’s 1 = 0.81, F(6, 105) = 4.18, P < 0.00082. Two of the univariate ANOVAs were also significant: females reported higher depressive impact scores associated with social exits (M = 220.83) and personal inertia (M = 313.64) than did males (M = 147.50 and M = 224.14, respectively). Validity of the DLES
The validity of the Depressive Life Experiences Scale was examined by studying its relationship to the Life Experiences Survey (LES; Sarason et al., 1978), a measure of both positive and negative life change. Positive correlations were expected between the negative life change subscale and the DLES subscales, since both measures concern ‘negative’, undesirable life experiences. Table 4 presents the correlations between the DLES and the Life Experiences Survey. As an inspection of this table indicates, the positive life change subscale from the LES was unrelated to
WILLIAM E. SNELL JR et al.
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Table 3. Means and standard deviations on the DLES for males and females Depressive Life Experiences Impact subscales
Males (n = 28)
Females (n = 84)
Social Exits
147.50 (96.47) i96.11' (118.12) 224.14 (121.6) 163.36 (109.33) 191.43 (147.80) 215.50 (103.93)
220.83 (139.65) ‘187.31’ (130.19) 313.64 (196.05) 197.60 (126.45) 207.32 (147.87) 221.35 ( 139.49)
Interpersonal
Disharmony
Personal Inertia Personal Frustration Personal Inadequacy Others’ Misfortunes Higher scores correspond ‘P < 0.05.
(JIO) 4.64* Cl 5.16. 1.64
to a greater impact for the depressive experimceJ.
the six subscales on the Depressive Life Experiences Scale. As predicted, significant correlations were obtained between the negative life change subscale of the LES and five of the DLES subscales (i.e. the social exits, the interpersonal disharmony, the personal inertia, the personal frustration, and the person inadequancy subscales). The pattern of these results thus supports the view that the Depressive Life Experiences Scale is a measure of negative life experiences, as indicated by its relationship with the negative life change subscale from the Life Experiences Survey (LES; Sarason et al., 1978). Li$e satisfaction and the DLES In order to provide additional evidence for the validity of the DLES, its relationship with a measure of life satisfaction was examined. If the subscales on the Depressive Life Experiences Scale actually do measure depressive life stress, then they should correlate in a negative direction with life satisfaction measures. To examine this possibility, the relationship between the DLES and the Life Satisfaction section of the Coping Assessment Battery (Bugen & Hawkins, 1981; Bugen et al., 1980) was examined. The correlations are presented in Table 5. An inspection of the correlations in this table reveals that (1) job satisfaction ratings were negatively correlated with the interpersonal disharmony subscale; (2) leisure satisfaction ratings were negatively correlated with the following subscales on the DLES: social exits, interpersonal disharmony, personal inertia, personal frustration, personal inadequancy, and others’ misfortunes; and (3) love satisfaction ratings were negatively correlated with the social exits, personal inertia, personal frustration, and personal inadequacy subscales. There were no significnat correlations between the financial satisfaction measure and any of the subscales on the Depressive Life Experiences Scale. Overall, these results confirm the expectation that depressive life experiences are associated with diminished job, leisure, love, and health satisfaction. Table 4. Correlations between the Life Experiences Survey and the DLES Life Experiences Survey DLES subscales Social Exits Interpersonal
Disharmony
Personal Inertia Personal Frustration Personal Inadequacy Others’ Misfortunes
Positive change
Negative change
-0.01 (IlO) -0.04 (110) 0.08 (III) 0.02 (109) 0.00 (102) 0.02 (109)
0.35*** (110) 0.20’ (110) 0.28*** OII) 0.33*** (109) 0.27.’ (102) 0.16 (109)
n per correlation is shown in parentheses. Higher DLES scores indicate greater exposure to the depressive experiences associated with each subscale. Higher LES scores correspond to more positive and negative life change. lP < 0.05; l*P < 0.01; l*P c 0.005.
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life experiences
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Table 5. Correlations between the DLES and Quality-of-Life Depressive Life EXpCliCW5s Impact subscales Social Exits Interpersonal Disharmony Personal Inertia Personal Frustration Personal Inadequacy Others’ Misfortunes
Indicators
QLI satisfaction subscales Job -0.07 (99) -0.18’ (99) -0.11 (100) -0.01 (99) -0.03 (92) -0.13 (98)
Leisure -0.18’ (112) -0.18’ (112) -0.23** (113) -0.31*” (Ill) -0.22’ (103) 0.06 (111)
Love
Health
Finances
-0.15 (108) -0.27** (108) -0.l.i (109) -0.13 (107) -0.14 (101) -0.01 (107)
-0.19 (Ill) -0.13 (111) -0.28*“* (112) -0.25*** (1101 -0.25** (102) -0.02 (110)
0.03 (110) -0.07 (110) -0.02 (111) 0.04 (109) -0.01 (101) 0.00 (109)
n per correlation is shown in parentheses. Higher DLES scores correspond to a more stressful exposure to the depressive experiences associated with each subscale. Higher scores on the QLI correspond to more satisfaction with that aspect of life. lf < 0.05: l*P < 0.01; l**p < 0.005.
DISCUSSION
The findings reported in this article provide evidence that the Depressive Life Experiences Scale can be a useful research tool for the investigation of depressive life experiences. This objective self-report instrument contains separate subscales designed to measure six types of life events and experiences which evoke feelings of depression: social exits, interpersonal disharmony, personal inertia, personal frustration, personal inadequacy, and others’ misfortunes. The research evidence indicated that the subscales on the DLES were adequately reliable over an interval of 4 weeks, and that they have sufficient internal consistency to justify their use in research dealing with depression and depressive life experiences. Support for the validity of the Depressive Life Experiences Scale as a measure of ‘negative’ life experiences was provided by the finding that five of the six DLES subscales were significantly related to the negative life change scale on the Life Experiences Survey (LES; Sarason et al., 1978). In addition, it was found that depressive life experiences were significantly related in a negative direction with a number of life satisfaction scales (Bugen & Hawkins, 1981). These findings are consistent with previous studies showing a positive relationship between both stressors and various types of health problems (DeLongis et al., 1988; Nezu & Ronan, 1985). Other results reported in the present investigation also indicated that women reported more depressive stress than men for those life experiences dealing with social exits and personal inertia, but that men reported more depressogenic life experiences associated with interpersonal disharmony. These findings need to be considered within the context of previous approaches to gender and depression. While some studies do report that women report more symptoms of depression than do men (e.g. Radloff, 1975), Newmann (1984) has recently shown that these studies have used depression instruments that confound sadness with depression, and that when these two facets of dysphoria are studied separately gender differences in depression become trivial in nature (cf. Nolen-Hoeksema, 1987). However, in a related investigation focusing on gender vulnerability to stressful life experiences (rather than depressive symptomology), Newmann (1986) did find that women were more likely to report greater stress associated with social isolation. This finding is consistent with the present results indicating that females, relative to males, report more depressogenic experiences associated with social exits. Further research is needed, however, to gain insight into the present finding that males suffer more hardships associated with interpersonal disharmony than do females. While the present findings were interpreted as evidence for the multidimensional nature of depressive life experiences and their impact on various aspects of life satisfaction, it is clear that the relationships themselves are correlational in nature. As such, it is possible to question whether the experience of depressive stress is an antecedent of distress, simply a consequence, or perhaps only an epiphenomenon. One should thus be cautious about drawing any cause-effect conclusions based on this research (Depue & Monroe, 1986). A conclusive, unambiguous resolution of this issue must await the outcome of controlled longitudinal studies. None the less, there is suggestive
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er al.
evidence reported in other investigations, underscoring the causal role of stressful life experiences in people’s susceptibility to physical problems (Kobasa, 1979; Kobasa, Maddi & Kahn, 1981). In conclusion, the Depressive Life Experiences Scale would seem to be a useful instrument to employ in future studies aimed at identifying precipitating variables associated with depression (Ilfeld, 1977; Lewinsohn & Talkington, 1979; Oatley & Bolton, 1985). One of the main advantages of the DLES is that the subscales allow researchers and practitioners to obtain individualized ratings of both the frequency and the intensity of several types of depressive life experiences. In research currently underway, we are examining the impact of depressive life experiences and ‘cognitive-distortion’ tendencies on people’s feelings of chronic depression (Beck et al., 1967). It is anticipated that chronic depression will be associated with exposure to depressive life experiences, primarily among those individuals prone to unrealistic thinking (Denney & Frisch, 1981; Griper, Olinger & Air, 1989; Olinger, Kuiper & Shaw, 1987). Acknowledgemenrs~ratitude is extended to Dora Weaver for her helpful comments on an earlier version of this article. Portions of these data were presented at the annual meeting of the Southwestern Psychological Association, San Antonio, Texas. U.S.A.
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