| Name of the Instrument/Tool | Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) |
| First Description |
Cohen S, Kamarck T, Mermelstein R. A global measure of perceived stress. J Health Soc Behav 1983;24:385–96. |
| Year | 1983 |
| Domains | |
| Concept of constructs | Anxiety and depression |
| Population/Disease | Generic |
| Originally developed for | --- |
| Other rheumatic diseases where can be applied (only if validated) |
--- |
| Additional population with no rheumatic diseases |
No |
| Language: Originally published in | English |
| Available in Language | Polish, Korean, Turkish, French, Arabic, Bulgarian, Finnish, Chinese, Thai, Russian |
| REFERENCE IDENTIFICATION | |
| Author/s | Cohen S, Kamarck T, Mermelstein R. |
| Title | A global measure of perceived stress |
| Journal | J Health Soc Behav |
| Year | 1983 |
| Vol | 24 |
| Num | 4 |
| Pages | 385-96 |
| Country | USA |
| Language | English |
| Other references of interest | |
| Link | https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25031113/ |
| Brief Description |
Review of the psychometric evidence of the perceived stress scale |
| Link | https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/1593914/ |
| Brief Description |
The MOS 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36). II. Psychometric and clinical tests of validity in measuring physical and mental health constructs |
| Link | https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33091267/ |
| Brief Description |
Measures of Psychosocial Stress and Stressful Exposures |
| Instrument/Tool Translations References | |
| Link | https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32197589/ |
| Brief Description |
Psychometric properties of the perceived stress scale in a community sample of Chinese |
| Link | https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32197589/ |
| Brief Description |
Korean versions of the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-14, 10 and 4): psychometric evaluation in patients with chronic disease |
| Link | https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28627220/ |
| Brief Description |
The German Version of the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10): Evaluation of Dimensionality, Validity, and Measurement Invariance With Exploratory and Confirmatory Bifactor Modeling |
| DEVELOPER CONTACT INFORMATION | |
| Correspondence to | Robin Mermelstein |
| robinm@uic.edu | |
| Address | --- |
| Website | --- |
| Available | --- |
| Links | --- |
| DESCRIPTION OF THE INSTRUMENT | |
| Type Of Measure | Scale |
| Brief Description |
This scales is generated to measure general stress perceptions and the degree to which situations in one's life are appraised as stressful. Items assess the respondent's global level of perceived stress over the last month, including the degree to which they find life unpredictable, uncontrollable, and overloading. |
| Number of Items | Original PSS includes 14 items. There are two validated iterations with 10 and 4 items. |
| Range | PSS-14: scores range from 0 to 56; PSS-10: 0 to 40; PSS-4: 0 to 16. |
| Responses options/scale |
Yes and 4 = very often. |
| Developed for | Both |
| PRACTICAL APPLICATION | |
| Method of administration | Online/Mail based, Online, Interviewer/assessor, Self-administered |
| Recommendations to score |
PSS scores are obtained by reversing the scores on the positive items (0 = 4, 1 = 3, 2 = 2, 3 = 1, and 4 = 0) and then summing across all items. For the PSS-14, items 4 to 7, 9 to 10, and 13 are the positively stated items. |
| Score Interpretation | Higher scores indicate greater perceived stress |
| Cut-off points | The PSS was not developed to be used as a diagnostic instrument, and there are no score cutoffs. |
| Cut-off points applied to | --- |
| Smallest detectable change if described | --- |
| Smallest detectable change applied to | --- |
| Completion time by the patient | 5 minutes |
| Scoring time by the assessor | <5 minutes |
| Training to score | Not necessary |
| Strengths | Easy to use, Widely used |
| Limitations | --- |
| OTHER COMMENTS | |
| Other Comments |
The PSS is free to use. Permission for use is not necessary when use is for nonprofit academic research or nonprofit educational purposes. |