Psychological Capital Questionnaire

What it measures

Measures the four psychological capital resources (HERO): Hope (agency and pathways thinking), Efficacy (confidence to exert effort), Resilience (bouncing back from adversity), and Optimism (positive attributions about outcomes). Grounded in positive organisational behaviour theory. Predicts work performance, wellbeing, and engagement.

Response format

Likert (1–6, strongly disagree to strongly agree)

Representative items

• I feel confident helping to set targets/goals in my work area. (Efficacy)
• If I should find myself in a jam at work, I could think of many ways to get out of it. (Hope — Pathways)
• I can think of many ways to reach my current work goals. (Hope — Agency)
• When I have a setback at work, I have trouble recovering from it, moving on. (R, Resilience)
• I always look on the bright side of things regarding my job. (Optimism)

This is a licensed instrument — representative items are shown for reference only. Obtain the original scale materials from the publisher before use in research.

Usage notes & scoring

(R)=reverse-scored. Four subscale scores and a total PsyCap composite. Requires licence from Mind Garden. Widely used in organisational psychology, leadership, and workplace wellbeing research. Higher PsyCap consistently predicts better job performance, job satisfaction, and organisational commitment.

Recommended companion scales

Citation

Luthans, F., Youssef, C.M., & Avolio, B.J. (2007). Psychological capital: Developing the human competitive edge. Oxford University Press.

Keywords