Researchers from Carnegie-Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh, led by psychology Professor Thomas Kamarck, will determine the effectiveness of a wrist-mounted instrument -- called an "eWatch" -- that periodically asks wearers to input specific information about daily social stresses.

The eWatch, a multi-sensor package about the size of a large wristwatch, was developed by Daniel Siewiorek, director of Carnegie-Mellon's Human-Computer Interaction Institute, and Professor Asim Smailagic. Both are co-investigators in the new study.

Previous research has determined people who report highly stressful lifestyles might develop higher rates of a variety of illnesses, ranging from viral infection to heart disease. But measuring exposure to stress is problematic.

Kamarck and his colleagues have received a $426,000 National Institutes of Health grant for the first year of their four-year project.