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Research Instrument Mental Health & Mood // BFNES

Brief Fear of Negative Evaluation Scale - Straightforward

8-item scale consisting of the straightforward (non-reverse-worded) items from the Brief Fear of Negative Evaluation Scale. Measures fear and worry about receiving negative evaluation from others. Has superior psychometric properties compared to the full 12-item BFNE.

Purpose Details Scientific Documentation Limitations Related

Purpose

Self-report research instrument, reproduced here under an open license for non-diagnostic educational, research, and self-reflection use.

Details

Administration
Self-Administered
Intended Use
Research

Scientific Documentation

Developer / Author
Leary, M. R. (original FNE, 1983); straightforward-item revision: Rodebaugh, T. L., Woods, C. M., Thissen, D. M., Heimberg, R. G., Chambless, D. L., & Rapee, R. M.
Development Year
2004

Theoretical framework: Brief measure of fear of negative evaluation from others, a core feature of social anxiety.

Reliability: Published studies report high internal consistency for the straightforward-item version.

Validity: Correlates strongly with social anxiety measures; the straightforward wording was shown to have cleaner factor structure than the original mixed-valence item set.

References: Rodebaugh, T. L., Woods, C. M., Thissen, D. M., Heimberg, R. G., Chambless, D. L., & Rapee, R. M. (2004). More information from fewer questions: the factor structure and item properties of the original and Brief Fear of Negative Evaluation Scale. Psychological Assessment, 16(2), 169-181.

Limitations: Imported from the OpenScales open item-bank project. This specific digital implementation has not been independently clinically validated by PsiQ — scores are for self-reflection, research, and educational purposes only, and are not a diagnosis.

License: CC BY 2.0 (https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2714515/). Citation: Leary, M. R. (1983). A brief version of the Fear of Negative Evaluation Scale. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 9(3), 371-375. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167283093007 This is not a diagnostic tool. If you are in crisis or having thoughts of self-harm, please contact a licensed mental health professional or a crisis helpline in your country immediately. Low/Moderate/High bands below reflect this test's own possible score range only (simple thirds) — they are NOT a clinical threshold or population norm. No such cutoff has been published for this instrument.

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