RESUMO
There are few well validated instruments for measuring the impact of life events and experiences in childhood and adolescence. This study examines the reliability of a new instrument, the Psychosocial Assessment of Childhood Experiences of PACE. Fifteen children and parents were interviewed on two cassions ten days apart for the main test-retest reliability study. About half of the events recorded were reported on both occasions (0.45% and 0.55% concordance). When the impact of specific events was examined much higher levels of agreement were found. Inter-rater reliability tests also yielded higher rate (Kappa 0.74 and above). Possible reasons for these important differences are discussed and the inherent methodological difficulties considered.