Emotion Regulation Skills Questionnaire

What it measures

Measures eight skills central to effective emotion regulation: awareness, clarity, body sensations, understanding, acceptance, tolerance, readiness to confront distressing emotions, and the ability to modify them. Grounded in Berking's Adaptive Coping with Emotions (ACE) model. Used as a process and outcome measure in skills-based emotion regulation interventions.

Response format

Likert (0–4, not at all to almost always) over the past week

Representative items

• I am aware of my emotions. (Awareness)
• I know exactly what I feel. (Clarity)
• I am aware of my body sensations that go along with my emotions. (Body Sensations)
• I understand why I feel the way I do. (Understanding)
• I accept my emotions. (Acceptance)

Usage notes & scoring

Freely available from Martin Berking. Eight subscale scores reflect distinct ER skill areas. Higher scores = greater ER competence. Sensitive to change in emotion regulation-focused interventions. The ERSQ is one of the few measures that captures ER skills as competencies rather than just strategies used.

Recommended companion scales

Citation

Berking, M., & Znoj, H. (2008). Development and validation of a self-report measure for the assessment of emotion-regulation skills (ERSQ). Journal of Individual Differences, 29(3), 168–187.

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