Psychological Inner Emptiness

What it measures

Three items measure the degree to which a person experiences a sense of internal void or psychological hollowness, likely stemming from a lack of meaning or social belonging. Used repeatedly as a manipulation check in studies examining how social exclusion shapes preferences for visually dense stimuli.

Response format

7-point Likert (1=strongly disagree, 7=strongly agree)

Scale items

• I feel empty inside.
• I feel as though part of me is missing.
• I feel like there is nothing inside me.

Full scale items shown. Always cite the original source when using this scale in research.

Usage notes & scoring

Alphas ranged from .90 to .96 across multiple studies. Successful use as a manipulation check provides preliminary evidence of predictive validity.

Citation

Su, L., Wan, E. W., & Jiang, Y. (2019). Filling an empty self: The impact of social exclusion on consumer preference for visual density. Journal of Consumer Research, 46(4), 808–824.

Keywords