Life Event Checklist LEL

Abstract

The Life Event Checklist (LEL) is a psychological assessment tool designed to systematically inventory major life changes experienced by an individual and their close social network (spouse, family, friends) over the preceding twelve months. Unlike checklists that only count occurrences, the LEL incorporates detailed follow-up questions to assess the subjective impact (good, bad, or neutral), the desired nature of the event, and the specific individuals affected. This structure provides a nuanced measure of recent psychological stress and adaptation, making it valuable for research on environmental demands and health outcomes.

Keywords

Life events, stress assessment, social readjustment, psychological adaptation, retrospective inventory, stress load, life changes, psychometrics.

Authors

Sheldon Cohen (primary researcher associated with the documented version), and colleagues.

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Purpose

The primary purpose of the Life Event Checklist is to quantify the number and nature of significant changes occurring in an individual’s life within a defined 12-month period. This quantification of environmental demands is essential for researchers studying the relationship between life experiences and health outcomes, particularly the onset or exacerbation of physical or mental illness.

The scale is structured not just to record the occurrence of an event (e.g., divorce, job loss, marriage) but also to capture the individual’s appraisal of that event—specifically, whether it was perceived as positive or negative, and whether it was desired or undesired. This distinction allows for a more sophisticated analysis of the differential impact of various forms of psychological stress compared to instruments that merely assign numerical weights to events.

Construct

The LEL measures the construct of recent cumulative psychological stress load, operationalized through the occurrence and subjective evaluation of major life events. It is rooted in the theoretical premise that significant life changes—whether positive (e.g., marriage, promotion) or negative (e.g., death, divorce)—require substantial psychological and physical adjustment, thereby taxing an individual’s adaptive resources.

This specific version of the LEL extends traditional approaches by assessing the subjective valence and controllability of the event. By asking respondents to rate the experience as “Very good” through “Very bad,” the LEL moves beyond a simple tally of events to measure the perceived strain or benefit, enhancing its ability to predict distress outcomes.

Validity

While specific psychometric properties for the 2006 version of the LEL must be referenced in its associated academic literature, life event checklists generally demonstrate strong concurrent validity, correlating significantly with other established measures of perceived stress and cumulative adversity. The detailed nature of the items and the inclusion of subjective ratings (e.g., good/bad experience ratings) enhance the scale’s content validity, ensuring comprehensive coverage of relevant domains such as relational, occupational, financial, and health-related changes.

Empirical studies utilizing similar structured inventories have shown predictive validity through their association with indices of physical illness, depression, and anxiety disorders. This suggests that the total score, particularly when incorporating the negative subjective weight assigned to events, is a meaningful predictor of subsequent psychological distress and health decline.

Reliability

The Reliability of life event measures is typically assessed via inter-rater agreement for scoring open-ended responses (such as the optional events in Item 24) and test-retest stability over short intervals. Given that the LEL focuses on specific events within the past 12 months, temporal stability is generally high when the measure is administered within a short window (e.g., a few weeks), assuming no new major events have occurred in the interim.

A key consideration for reliability in retrospective measures like the LEL is the potential for recall bias, where respondents may forget or distort past events. The detailed, structured prompting used in the LEL, covering specific areas of life (e.g., job changes, legal issues, family problems), is designed to minimize this omission bias and improve the consistency of reporting.

Factor Analysis

Traditional Life Event Checklists, which assess discrete occurrences, are generally not subjected to factor analysis for internal consistency in the same manner as trait scales. However, when factor analysis is applied to the subjective **impact ratings** or **severity scores** associated with the occurrence of events, meaningful dimensions often emerge.

These conceptual factors typically correspond to major life domains, allowing researchers to study domain-specific stress exposures. Common groupings identified include: 1) Relational Stress (marriage, divorce, breakups); 2) Occupational and Financial Stress (job loss, business failure, demotion); and 3) Health and Family Crises (accidents, hospitalization, death of a loved one). Analyzing these factors allows for a more targeted understanding of which life sectors contribute most significantly to overall psychological stress burden.

Instrument

Test Type: Structured Self-report Life Event Checklist and interview screen.

Format: 24 core items, many of which include multiple cascading sub-questions requiring binary (Yes/No), categorical (Who?), and Likert-type subjective ratings (e.g., Very good to Very bad experience). The checklist covers events experienced by the respondent and their immediate family/spouse over the last 12 months.

Language Available: English (Original version).

Population Group: General population, utilized extensively in longitudinal studies and clinical settings to assess cumulative stress exposure.

Age Group: Adults (items are relevant to adult roles: marriage, employment, financial management, parenthood).

Population Details: Respondents must have sufficient cognitive function for accurate retrospective recall and the capacity to evaluate the emotional valence of complex life changes.

Test Methodology: Retrospective self-report inventory. Scoring involves counting the number of events, often differentiated by subjective rating (positive vs. negative valence) to create an index of stress or cumulative adversity.

Keywords

Stress measurement, life event scale, psychological inventory, retrospective report, family stress, occupational stress, relationship changes, health psychology.

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Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: N/A

Affiliation Email addresses: N/A

Correspondence Address: Likely associated with the Department of Psychology, Carnegie Mellon University (based on source documentation).

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The LEL is an academic research instrument. Specific permissions for commercial use or licensing fees are typically managed by the affiliated academic institution (Carnegie Mellon University). The instrument is often made available for non-commercial research use upon request to the authors.

Test Year: The version documented is dated 12/13/2006.

The original PDF can be downloaded here: www.psy.cmu.edu/havingscohen/Life_Events_Checklist_LEL.pdf

Reference’s

Cohen, S. (2006). Life Events Checklist (LEL), Version: 12/13/2006. Carnegie Mellon University.

Holmes, T. H., & Rahe, R. H. (1967). The Social Readjustment Rating Scale. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 11(2), 213–218. (Conceptual foundation for life event measurement).

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Items of the Life Event Checklist LEL

IMPORTANT: The following scale items must be preserved in their original language and must not be changed in any way.

Below are questions about a number of events that commonly happen in people’s lives. Each question is concerned with whether an event has happened to you (and in some cases your spouse) during the LAST 12 MONTHS.

Please respond YES‚ if the event happened and NO‚ if it didn’t. For several of the events‚ there are also some follow-up questions for those who answer yes.

When we ask a question about a person’s spouse/partner‚ we are referring to both MARRIED SPOUSES and to unmarried partners who LIVE TOGETHER and have a MARITAL-LIKE relationship.

Some of the questions we ask below may remind you of rather painful feelings. They are‚ however‚ extremely important to people when they do happen‚ so please try to answer.

1. Have you moved during the last 12 months?

• No (Skip to Q.2)      Yes
• If yes:
  • a. Would you say that you moved to a neighborhood that is better‚ worse‚ or about the same as where you were living?
    • Same
    • Better
    • Worse
  • b. Overall‚ would you say that your moving was a good or bad experience?
    • Very good
    • Moderately good
    • Slightly good
    • Slightly bad
    • Moderately bad
    • Very bad

2. Have you broken off an engagement to be married or ended an intimate relationship during the last 12 months?

• No (Skip to Q.3)    Yes

If yes:

• a. How would you rate your feelings about breaking up?
  • Very good
  • Moderately good
  • Slightly good
  • Slightly bad
  • Moderately bad
  • Very bad

3. Did you get married during the last 12 months?

• No (Skip to Q.4)    Yes

If yes:

• a. Did you want to get married?
  • No Yes
• b. Overall‚ would you rate getting married as a good or bad experience?
  • Very good
  • Moderately good
  • Slightly good
  • Slightly bad
  • Moderately bad
  • Very bad

4. Did someone you were close to die during the last 12 months?

• No (Skip to Q.5)   Yes
• If yes‚ who:
  • Spouse or intimate friend
  • Parent
  • Spouse’s parent
  • Brother or sister child other relatives
  • Friend
  • Other

5. Were you separated or divorced during the last 12 months?

• No (Skip to Q.6)    Yes

If yes:

• a. Did you want to get separated or divorced?
  • No Yes
• b. Overall‚ would you rate your separation or divorce as a good or bad experience?
  • Very good
  • Moderately good
  • Slightly good
  • Slightly bad
  • Moderately bad
  • Very bad

6. Did you break up with a close friend during the last 12 months?

• No (Skip to Q.7) Yes

If yes:

• a. Did you want to break up with this friend?
  • No Yes
• b. Overall‚ would you rate your breaking up as a good or bad experience?
  • Very good
  • Moderately good
  • Slightly good
  • Slightly bad
  • Moderately bad
  • Very bad

7. Have you had any important relationship‚ for example‚ with your spouse‚ a close friend‚ your boss‚ or a family member become significantly worse during the last 12 months (this should not include the relationship referred to in item 6 above)?

• No (Skip to Q.8) Yes

If yes:

• a. With whom? (more than one response is possible)
  • Boss
  • Spouse
  • Friend
  • Child
  • Parent
  • Other family member

8. Did you have a child or adopt a child during the last 12 months?

• No (Skip to Q.9) Yes

If yes:

• a. Is this a first child?
  • No Yes
• b. Did you plan to have this child?
  • No Yes
• c. Would you rate ha‎ving a child and adjusting to ha‎ving a child as a good or bad experience?
  • Very good
  • Moderately good
  • Slightly good
  • Slightly bad
  • Moderately bad
  • Very bad

9. Have you‚ a very close friend‚ or close family member had an accident that required emergency medical treatment during the last 12 months?

• No (Skip to Q.10) Yes

If yes:

• a. Who? (more than one response is possible)
  • You
  • Spouse/partner
  • Child
  • Parent
  • Spouse’s parent
  • Brother or sister
  • Friend
  • Other

10. Have you‚ a very close friend‚ or close family member been hospitalized for a serious (life- threatening) illness during the last 12 months?

• No (Skip to Q.11) Yes

If yes:

• a. Who? (more than one response is possible)
  • You
  • Spouse/partner
  • Child
  • Parent
  • Spouse’s parent
  • Brother or sister
  • Friend
  • Other

11a. (Women) Have you been pregnant during the last 12 months?

• No (Skip to Q.12) Yes

If yes:

• a. Was the pregnancy planned or unplanned?
  • Planned       Unplanned
• b. How would you rate being pregnant?
  • Very good
  • Moderately good
  • Slightly good
  • Slightly bad
  • Moderately bad
  • Very bad

11b. (Men) Has your wife‚ partner or girlfriend been pregnant during the last 12 months? [Tick no if you do not have a wife‚ partner‚ or girlfriend.]

• No (Skip to Q.12)   Yes

If yes:

• a. Was the pregnancy planned or unplanned?
  • Planned Unplanned
• b. How would you rate being pregnant?
  • Very good
  • Moderately good
  • Slightly good
  • Slightly bad
  • Moderately bad
  • Very bad

12a. (Women) Have you had an abortion during the last 12 months?

• No (Skip to Q.13)    Yes

12b. (Men) Has your wife‚ partner or girlfriend had an abortion during the last 12 months? [Tick no if you do not have a wife‚ partner‚ or girlfriend.]

• No (Skip to Q.13) Yes

13a. (Women) Have you had a miscarriage or stillbirth during the last 12 months?

• No (Skip to Q.14) Yes

13b. (Men) Has your wife‚ partner or girlfriend had a miscarriage or stillbirth during the last 12 months? [Tick no if you do not have a wife‚ partner‚ or girlfriend.]

• No (Skip to Q.14) Yes

14. Have you or your spouse/partner lost or changed jobs or been involuntarily unemployed during the last 12 months?

• No (Skip to Q.15) Yes

If yes:

• a. Who?
  • You
  • Spouse/partner
  • Both
• b. Why did you (or spouse) leave? (answer only for you if both lost or changed jobs)
  • On strike
  • Temporarily laid off
  • Fired
  • Found better job
  • Plant or business closing or reorganizing
  • Retired
  • Other
• c. Could you (or spouse) have stayed in your old job if you wanted?
  • No        Yes
• d. How would you rate your feelings about leaving your job? (or your spouse leaving his/her job)?
  • Very good
  • Moderately good
  • Slightly good
  • Slightly bad
  • Moderately bad
  • Very bad

15. During the last 12 months‚ have you or your spouse/partner suffered a significant business or investment loss or has a business you owned failed?

• No (Skip to Q.16) Yes

If yes:

• a. Who?
  • You
  • Spouse/partner
  • Both

16. During the last 12 months‚ have you or your spouse/partner had any serious problems or disappointment at school or in an educational course (university‚ training program‚ etc.)?

(answer only for you if both had disappointments)

• No (Skip to Q.17) Yes

If yes:

• a. Who?
  • You
  • Spouse/partner
  • Both
• b. What was the disappointment?
  • Demoted
  • Failed to get raise or promotion
  • Failed a course
  • Trouble with boss or coworkers
  • Put on academic probation
  • Failed to get into an educational course (college‚ training program‚ etc.)
  • Other

17. Have you or your spouse/partner had significant success at work or in an educational course (university‚ training program) during the last 12 months?

• No (Skip to Q.18) Yes

If yes:

• a. Who?
  • You
  • Spouse/partner
  • Both

18. Has there been a significant change in your personal finances during the last 12 months?

• No (Skip to Q.19) Yes

If yes:

• a. Has the change been for the better or worse?
  • Better         Worse

19. Has your house been broken into and/or burgled during the last 12 months?

• No (Skip to Q.20) Yes

20. Have you or your spouse/partner or other member of your immediate family been assaulted or mugged during the last 12 months?

• No (Skip to Q.21) Yes

If yes:

• a. Who? (more than one response is possible)
  • You
  • Spouse/partner
  • Child
  • Parent
  • Brother or sister
  • Other

21. Has the behavior of any member of your family been a significant problem for you during the last 12 months?

• No (Skip to Q.22) Yes

If yes:

• a. Who? (more than one response is possible)
  • Spouse/partner
  • Child
  • Parent
  • Brother or sister
  • Other

22. Have you or your spouse/partner had to appear in court during the last 12 months as a defendant‚ a witness in a criminal case‚ or as party to a suit?

• No (Skip to Q.23) Yes

If yes:

• a. Who?
  • You
  • Spouse/partner
  • Both
• b. How would you rate the court experience?
  • Very good
  • Moderately good
  • Slightly good
  • Slightly bad
  • Moderately bad
  • Very bad

23. Have you had a pet (animal) to whom you were attached die‚ or get lost‚ or did you have to give it away during the last 12 months?

• No (Skip to Q.24) Yes

24. Other than the events we have already asked about‚ have any other important things happened to you or to a very close friend or close family member in the last 12 months that made that period significantly different from a typical year?

• No (DONE w/ Questionnaire) Yes

If yes:

You can list up to three (3) events. Please do not feel obliged to include an additional event or events unless they were significant!

• Event 1: To whom?
  • You
  • Spouse/partner
  • Child
  • Parent
  • Spouse’s parent
  • Brother or sister
  • Friend
  • Other
• What happened?
• Did you want the event to happen?
  • No Yes
• How would you rate your feelings about this event?
  • Very good
  • Moderately good
  • Slightly good
  • Slightly bad
  • Moderately bad
  • Very bad
• Event 2: To whom?
  • You
  • Spouse/partner
  • Child
  • Parent
  • Spouse’s parent
  • Brother or sister
  • Friend
  • Other
• What happened?
• Did you want the event to happen?
  • No Yes
• How would you rate your feelings about this event?
  • Very good
  • Moderately good
  • Slightly good
  • Slightly bad
  • Moderately bad
  • Very bad
• Event 3: To whom?
  • You
  • Spouse/partner
  • Child
  • Parent
  • Spouse’s parent
  • Brother or sister
  • Friend
  • Other
• What happened?
• Did you want the event to happen?
  • No Yes
• How would you rate your feelings about this event?
  • Very good
  • Moderately good
  • Slightly good
  • Slightly bad
  • Moderately bad
  • Very bad