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. 2009 Jul-Aug;49(5):368-80.
doi: 10.1080/03630240903238743.

A comparison of the occurrence and perceived stress of major life events in black and white women

Anissa I Vines  1 , Myduc Ta, Denise Esserman, Donna D Baird
Affiliations

A comparison of the occurrence and perceived stress of major life events in black and white women

Anissa I Vines et al. Women Health. 2009 Jul-Aug.

Abstract

Purpose: To describe the occurrence and perceived stress of major life events, and to investigate whether adjusting for socioeconomic status reduced race/ethnicity differences.

Methods: Black (n = 639) and white (n = 419) women aged 35-49 years responded to 14 major life event questions within the domains of employment, health, relationship, finance, residential change, and crime.

Main findings: The total number of life events did not differ by race/ethnicity, but black women reported significantly more events in the domains of relationship, financial, and residential change than white women. White women generally reported higher stress for a given event than black women, although for "residential change" black women reported more severe stress than the white women.

Conclusions: Inclusion of both the occurrence and perceived stress of major life events can improve our understanding of how this stressor may affect health.

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