Perceived Stress Scale
A more precise measure of personal stress can be determined by using a variety of
instruments that have been designed to help measure individual stress levels. The first
of these is called the Perceived Stress Scale.
The Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) is a classic stress assessment instrument. The tool,
while originally developed in 1983, remains a popular choice for helping us understand
how different situations affect our feelings and our perceived stress. The questions in this
scale ask about your feelings and thoughts during the last month. In each case, you will
be asked to indicate how often you felt or thought a certain way. Although some of the
questions are similar, there are differences between them and you should treat each one
as a separate question. The best approach is to answer fairly quickly. That is, don’t try to
count up the number of times you felt a particular way; rather indicate the alternative
that seems like a reasonable estimate.
For each question choose from the following alternatives:
0 - never 1 - almost never 2 - sometimes 3 - fairly often 4 - very often
________ l. In the last month, how often have you been upset because of something
that
happened unexpectedly?
2. In the last month, how often have you felt that you were unable to control
________ the
important things in your life?
________ 3. In the last month, how often have you felt nervous and stressed?
4. In the last month, how often have you felt confident about your ability to
________ handle
your personal problems?
5. In the last month, how often have you felt that things were going your
________
way?
________ 6. In the last month, how often have you found that you could not cope with
all the things that you had to do?
________ 7. In the last month, how often have you been able to control irritations in
your life?
________ 8. In the last month, how often have you felt that you were on top of things?
________ 9. In the last month, how often have you been angered because of things that
happened that were outside of your control?
________ 10. In the last month, how often have you felt difficulties were piling up so
high that
you could not overcome them?
Figuring Your PSS Score
Puede determinar su puntaje de PSS siguiendo estas instrucciones:
1. Primero, invierta sus puntajes para las preguntas 4, 5, 7 y 8. En estas 4 preguntas,
cambie las puntuaciones de la siguiente manera:
0 = 4, 1 = 3, 2 = 2, 3 = 1, 4 = 0.
2. Ahora suma las puntuaciones de cada elemento para obtener un total. Mi
puntuación total es ___________.
3. Las puntuaciones individuales en el PSS pueden oscilar entre 0 y 40, y las
puntuaciones más altas indican un mayor estrés percibido.
► Las puntuaciones que van de 0 a 13 se considerarían de bajo estrés.
► Las puntuaciones que oscilan entre 14 y 26 se considerarían estrés
moderado.
► Las puntuaciones que oscilan entre 27 y 40 se considerarían de alto estrés
percibido.
The Perceived Stress Scale is interesting and important because your perception of
what is happening in your life is most important. Consider the idea that two individuals
could have the exact same events and experiences in their lives for the past month.
Depending on their perception, total score could put one of those individuals in the low
stress category and the total score could put the second person in the high stress
category.
=SI.CONJUNTO(P2<=13,"Bajo Estrés",P2<=26,"Estrés Moderado",P2<=40,"Alto
Estrés Percibido")
=SI.CONJUNTO(E30<=13”Bajo Estres”,E30<=26,”Estres Moderado”,E30<=40”,Alto
Estres”
Disclaimer: The scores on the following self-assessment do not reflect any particular diagnosis
or course of treatment. They are meant as a tool to help assess your level of stress. If you have
any further concerns about your current well being, you may contact EAP and talk confidentially
to one of our specialists.
EAP
State of New Hampshire
Employee Assistance Program
