Location
Smith, B.W., Dalen, J., Wiggins, K., Tooley, E., Christopher, P., & Bernard, J. (2008).
The Brief Resilience Scale: Assessing the ability to bounce back. International Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 15 ,
194/C0200.
Results and Comments
The BRS shows the expected correlations with other resiliency scales and discriminates between clinical groups
in the predicted direction. However, limitations of the BRS are related to the very specificity of the scale as
related to the individual’s ability to ‘bounce back’ after experiencing adversity. A second important limitation is
the lack of evidence that the BRS, as a self-report measure of resilience, predicts actual ‘bouncing back’ or recov-
ery as evidenced by independent behavioral and physiological measures ( Smith et al., 2013 ).
BRS SAMPLE ITEMS
Instructions: Please indicate the extent to which you
agree with each of the following statements by using the
following scale: 1 5strongly disagree; 2 5disagree;
35neutral; 4 5agree; 5 5strongly agree.
1.I tend to bounce back quickly after hard times.
2.I have a hard time making it through stressful
events (R).
3.It does not take me long to recover from a stressful
event.
4.It is hard for me to snap back when something bad
happens (R).5.I usually come through difficult times with little
trouble.
6.I tend to take a long time to get over set-backs in my
life (R).
Notes :R/C0Reverse worded item. Scores are the average
of responses on all items after reverse coding items 2, 4,
and 6.
Available from the first author ( bwsmith@unm.edu ).
Reproduced with permission.
Resiliency Scales for Children and Adolescents (RSCA)
(Prince-Embury, 2006, 2007 ).
Variable
Resiliency is viewed by Prince-Embury, 2006, 2007 ) as multidimensional (Sense of Mastery, Sense of
Relatedness and Emotional Reactivity) and is based in ordinary developmental processes as expressed by
Masters (2001). Further, it is assumed that core developmental dimensions of personal resiliency may be ‘protec-
tive’ of ‘risk’ and are best assessed in relation to each other for each individual.
Description
The RSCA, is a 64 item self-report inventory for children and adolescents aged 9 /C018 years, ( Prince-Embury,
2007). The RSCA consists of three global scales designed to reflect the three designated underlying systems of
resiliency listed above. Standardized T-scores on these three global scales comprise a Personal Resilience Profile,
which graphically displays the child’s relative strengths and vulnerabilities. Two composite scores, the Resource
Index and the Vulnerability Index, are summary scores that quantify the child’s relative strength and vulnerabil-
ity for use in preventive screening. The three global scales are comprised of 10 subscales that can be used to
understand the child’s specific strengths and vulnerabilities in more depth. Items were selected to cover theoreti-
cal content areas, were written at a Grade 3 reading level and were modified based on the findings of pilot stud-
ies and statistical analysis. Response options for all items are ordered on a 5-point Likert-type scale. The three
subscales of the RSCA are described below.
The Sense of Mastery S cale (20 items) consists of three conceptually related content areas: optimism about life
and one’s own competence; self-efficacy associated with developing problem-solving attitudes and strategies; and
adaptability , being personally receptive to criticism, and learning from one’s mistakes. Higher scores on this global
scale or subscales suggest higher personal resiliency in this developmental system.302 11. MEASURES OF RESILIENCY
III. EMOTION REGULATION