First, almost all nonreplications rely on brief self-report measures of stress, whereas studies using objective indicators or face-to-face interviews to assess stress exposure yield positive replications (“Stress Assessment” column in Tables 1 and 2). Face-to-face interviewers can clarify the meaning of a reported life event and enhance memory for life events by probing and by using techniques such as life event calendars, as did the initial study (3). In contrast, it is known that self-report event checklists gather idiosyncratic and inaccurate information (9, 10).
