This variable is only available in MAP.

Negative life events in the past year are assessed with an 18-item scale modified from the Established Populations for Epidemiologic Studies of the Elderly version. Participants are asked to respond yes = 1 if an event has occurred in the past year, otherwise no = 0. The overall score ranges from 0 to 18 and is the sum of the individual items, where higher scores indicate more negative life events occurring in the past year.

Participants are asked the following questions:

During the past year...

1. did you experience an illness or injury (get sick or hurt) that required staying overnight or longer in a hospital (not a nursing home)?
2. did you experience an illness or injury (get sick or hurt) that kept you from your usual activities (work, housework) for a week or more?
3. did you get a divorce?
4. did your husband/wife die?
5. did one of your children die?
6. did your husband/wife, child, or other household member move out or leave your home?
7. did a close family member or friend (other than husband/wife/child) die?
8. did a close family member or friend experience a serious illness or injury?
9. did you or a family member have any legal trouble (trouble with the law)?
10. did your financial situation get considerably worse?
11. did you move?
12. was your driver's license taken away?
13. was your husband/wife hospitalized?
14. was any other family member placed in an institution or nursing home?
15. were you institutionalized?
16. did you begin needing help with daily activities?
17. did you have to assume caregiver responsibilities for someone else?
18. did one of your children experience a serious problem?

Note: Because these events occur relatively infrequently, this measure had modest internal consistency (Cronbach's coefficient alpha = 0.51) and temporal stability in preliminary analyses.