Dimensions of experience and symptomatology

Six characteristics of life events and difficulties, namely loss (L), threat (T), anti-social act (A), hopeless situation (H), uncertain outcome (U) and choice of action (C), were used to score life situations experienced by 1060 adults over three months. Certain patterns of these, together with the respondents' sex, close and more superficial support discriminated significantly between subjects who had: depression the predominant symptom, anxiety predominant, tiredness predominant, backache predominant, none of these reaching pathological level. A hierarchy emerged from depression down through anxiety to tiredness and backache such that more severe life situations were associated with symptoms higher up the hierarchy. Situations with both choice of action (C) and loss (L) tended to be associated with depression. Anxiety related situations were mainly those containing threat (T) and at least two other characteristics. Tiredness went with situations characterised purely as CUH or CH or UH, and backache with minor situations containing only one characteristic. Lack of close confidant was most associated with depression; being a woman was associated with tiredness and anxiety equally and lack of superficial support with anxiety and depression equally. A parallel was drawn with Finlay-Jones and Brown.