Live Events, Stress, and Illness

Abstract

Illness onset is generally associated with several potential factors, including the presence of stressful environmental conditions, perception by the individual that such conditions are stressful, the relative ability to cope with or adapt to these conditions, genetic predisposition to a disease, and the presence of a disease agent. Attention is limited to life changes of a primarily personal nature, and only life events which are experineced primarily on an individual level, such as changes in family status or occupation, are considered.