So Much for the Notion of Stress as a Status Symbol

In the world as depicted by commercials, stress is largely an upscale affliction. We see harried business travelers coping with flight delays, well-dressed women juggling careers and kids, consumers dazed by the overabundance of choices open to them. In the real world, says a new Harris Poll, stress is much more likely to strike those at the lower end of the socioeconomic hierarchy. What’s striking is that the problems disproportionately besetting poorer people range well beyond money woes.