Questionnaire Analysis

The Fear Survey Schedule (FSS-90) is a self-report questionnaire on fears concerning various objects and situations, developed by Wolpe and Lang in 1964. It consists of 90 statements asking the respondent to indicate the degree of fear each item provokes. The scale specifically explores:
a) social phobias,
b) fears related to trauma, contamination, illness, or death,
c) fears of threatening or aversive situations,
d) animal phobias, and
e) agoraphobia and travel-related fears.

Purpose of the Questionnaire

The clinical objectives of the FSS-90 are:
a) to assist in diagnosing phobic disorders, and
b) to categorize situations that trigger phobic reactions (in adults aged 18 and over) for use in treatment approaches such as systematic desensitization, in vivo desensitization, and other graded exposure interventions.

Scoring Method and Statistical Analysis

Responses are rated using a 5-point Likert scale (from 0 = not at all to 4 = extremely). Participant scores are calculated for each of the five subscales, and the total score is the sum of all subscale scores combined.

Validity and Reliability

The FSS-90 has demonstrated appropriate convergent and divergent validity as a measure of phobic anxiety independent of depression levels. Test-retest reliability (assessed over a 3–4 week interval) was r = 0.89 for the total score, ranging from r = 0.90 to r = 0.80 for subscales (with a modal value of r = 0.90). Internal consistency reliability was α = 0.97 for the total score and ranged from α = 0.90 to α = 0.80 for subscales (modal value α = 0.89).

References

Mellon, R. (2000). A Greek-language inventory of fears: Psychometric and factor structure of self-reports of fear on the Hellenic Fear Survey Schedule. Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, 22(2), 233–254.
Vold, J. H., Gjestad, R., Aas, C. F., Meland, E., Johansson, K. A., & Fadnes, L. T. (2021). Validation of a three-item Fatigue Severity Scale for patients with substance use disorder: A cohort study from Norway (2016–2020). Health and Quality of Life Outcomes, 19(1), 1–11.