Introduction

The Friendship Quality Scale (FQS-36) is a self-report psychometric instrument designed to assess children’s and adolescents’ perceptions of the quality of their close friendships. The scale focuses on the emotional and behavioral characteristics that define meaningful friendships, examining both positive and negative aspects of peer relationships. It is widely used in developmental psychology, educational research, social psychology, and studies of children’s social adjustment.

Description

The FQS-36 consists of 36 items evaluating five fundamental dimensions of friendship quality:

  • Companionship: The extent to which friends spend time together, share activities, and enjoy each other’s company.
  • Help/Aid: The degree of emotional and practical support provided between friends.
  • Conflict: The frequency of disagreements, arguments, irritation, or negative interactions.
  • Security: The extent to which children feel safe, comfortable, and emotionally supported within the friendship.
  • Intimacy: The degree of closeness, trust, and willingness to share personal thoughts and feelings.

These dimensions represent both the external behavioral aspects and the internal emotional characteristics of friendship relationships.

Purpose

The FQS-36 is designed to:

  • Assess perceived friendship quality during childhood and adolescence.
  • Examine the role of friendships in social and emotional development.
  • Identify supportive and problematic characteristics of peer relationships.
  • Investigate associations between friendship quality, self-esteem, loneliness, and psychological adjustment.
  • Evaluate the effectiveness of social skills and peer relationship interventions.

Administration

The questionnaire is self-administered and is typically completed by children or adolescents while thinking about their best friend or closest friendship relationship. It can be administered individually or in small groups. For younger children or those requiring assistance, oral administration or additional guidance may be provided.

The scale is particularly suitable for preadolescent and adolescent populations.

Scoring

Items are rated using a 5-point Likert scale, typically ranging from:

0 = Not true at all
to
4 = Very true

Scores are calculated separately for each friendship dimension by summing the corresponding items.

Higher scores indicate stronger friendship quality, except for the Conflict dimension, where higher scores represent greater levels of negative interaction and difficulties within the friendship.

Interpretation

Higher scores in:

  • Companionship indicate stronger shared activities and social connection.
  • Help/Aid indicate greater mutual support and assistance.
  • Security reflect greater trust and emotional safety.
  • Intimacy indicate deeper emotional closeness.

Higher Conflict scores suggest more frequent disagreements and relational difficulties.

The FQS-36 provides a detailed profile of friendship functioning rather than a single measure of whether a friendship is simply “good” or “poor.”

Statistical Analysis

Psychometric evaluation of the FQS-36 commonly includes:

  • Descriptive statistics.
  • Internal consistency analysis (Cronbach’s alpha).
  • Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA).
  • Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA).
  • Test–retest reliability.
  • Item-total correlations.
  • Convergent and discriminant validity.
  • Correlation and regression analyses.
  • Group comparisons (t-test, ANOVA, MANOVA).

The Greek adaptation of the FQS demonstrated satisfactory reliability, with Cronbach’s alpha coefficients reported for the main dimensions ranging approximately from 0.63 to 0.78, supporting acceptable internal consistency.

Applications

The FQS-36 is widely used in:

  • Developmental psychology.
  • School psychology.
  • Educational research.
  • Peer relationship studies.
  • Social-emotional development research.
  • Autism and neurodevelopmental research.
  • Studies of loneliness, social competence, and adjustment.

Advantages

  • Comprehensive assessment of friendship quality.
  • Evaluates both positive and negative friendship characteristics.
  • Suitable for children and adolescents.
  • Provides separate dimensions rather than a single global score.
  • Useful for clinical, educational, and research applications.

Limitations

As a self-report measure, the FQS-36 reflects the child’s or adolescent’s perception of friendship quality rather than objective relationship characteristics. Responses may be influenced by mood, social desirability, current friendship experiences, and developmental level.

The scale should therefore be interpreted alongside other measures of peer functioning, social competence, and emotional adjustment.

References

Bukowski, W. M., Hoza, B., & Boivin, M. (1994). Measuring Friendship Quality during Pre- and Early Adolescence: The Development and Psychometric Properties of the Friendship Qualities Scale. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 11, 471–484.

Parker, J. G., & Asher, S. R. (1993). Friendship and Friendship Quality in Middle Childhood: Links with Peer Group Acceptance and Feelings of Loneliness and Social Dissatisfaction.

Kouvava, S., et al. (2023). Psychometric Properties of the Greek Translation of the Friendship Quality Questionnaire.