Introduction
The Penn State Worry Questionnaire concentrates on the experience of worrying: how persistent it feels, how difficult it is to set aside and how widely it spreads across situations. Its 16 statements describe a tendency to worry rather than a list of physical anxiety symptoms.
Worry often takes the form of repeated thoughts about what might happen. This differs from making a practical plan and then returning to another activity. Examples of worries that continue after a decision has been made can help clarify the experience covered by the questionnaire.
GAD-7 brings worry together with other recent anxiety symptoms. The Health Anxiety Inventory focuses on illness-related concerns. Choosing between them depends on whether the central issue is the process of worrying, a recent mix of symptoms or a particular health concern.
Instructions
Read each item carefully and choose the response that best applies.
Scoring and result metrics
The result page reports a local screening score for this questionnaire. Use the score range, any subscale scores, and the interpretation band together rather than treating one number as a diagnosis.
- Score range
- 0-80
- Items scored
- 16
- Result indicators
- Total score / Interpretation band when available
Score interpretation bands
- 0-80Severity score
Higher scores indicate greater generalized anxiety levels.
Interpretation bands summarize screening thresholds from the questionnaire source material. Higher scores usually indicate more of the measured concern unless the tool notes a different scoring rule.
Tool information
- Version
- 16 questions
- Administration
- Self-report
- Intended audience
- Adults and older adolescents examining persistent, excessive, and difficult-to-control worry as a general tendency
Sources
Related tests
Explore related screening tools in the same topic area.
Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7 Item Scale (GAD-7)
GAD-7 brings together seven experiences related to anxiety, including persistent worry, difficulty relaxing, restlessness and irritability.
Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM-A)
HAM-A is a clinician-rated framework for describing anxiety through psychological and physical symptoms.
Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale
The Liebowitz scale examines fear and avoidance separately across 24 social or performance situations.