Overview

The Fatigue Questionnaire (FQ) is a widely used self-report psychometric instrument developed to assess the severity of physical and mental fatigue experienced during the preceding two weeks. Originally developed and validated by Beurskens and colleagues (2000), the questionnaire provides a concise yet comprehensive evaluation of fatigue-related symptoms affecting physical functioning, cognitive performance, energy levels, and daily productivity. Owing to its strong psychometric properties and ease of administration, the FQ has been extensively applied in occupational health, clinical medicine, rehabilitation, psychology, epidemiological research, and chronic disease management.

Objective

The primary objective of the Fatigue Questionnaire (FQ) is to provide a reliable and valid assessment of subjective fatigue, enabling clinicians and researchers to quantify fatigue severity and evaluate its impact on daily functioning, cognitive performance, and overall well-being.

Specifically, the FQ is designed to:

  • Assess the severity of physical and mental fatigue.
  • Evaluate fatigue-related reductions in concentration, energy, and productivity.
  • Monitor changes in fatigue over time and following therapeutic interventions.
  • Support clinical assessment in patients with chronic medical or psychological conditions.
  • Facilitate research on occupational fatigue, chronic fatigue, rehabilitation, and quality of life.

Scale Structure

The Fatigue Questionnaire consists of 20 self-report items referring to experiences during the previous two weeks. Participants indicate the extent to which each statement reflects their current condition using a 7-point Likert response scale, ranging from “Yes, that is true” to “No, that is not true.”

The questionnaire evaluates several interconnected aspects of fatigue, including:

  • Physical exhaustion.
  • General tiredness.
  • Mental effort and cognitive fatigue.
  • Concentration difficulties.
  • Physical fitness and energy.
  • Motivation and daily activity.
  • Productivity and functional capacity.

Several positively worded items require reverse scoring to ensure that higher total scores consistently reflect greater fatigue severity. According to the original questionnaire, the reverse-scored items are explicitly identified within the instrument.

Applications

The Fatigue Questionnaire is extensively used in occupational medicine, clinical psychology, psychiatry, rehabilitation, oncology, neurology, rheumatology, primary care, and public health research. It is particularly valuable for assessing fatigue associated with chronic illnesses, musculoskeletal disorders, neurological diseases, cancer, depression, anxiety, burnout, and work-related stress.

In occupational settings, the FQ is frequently employed to investigate workplace fatigue, employee well-being, productivity, absenteeism, and occupational health risks. In clinical practice, it assists healthcare professionals in monitoring symptom progression, evaluating treatment effectiveness, and identifying individuals requiring additional medical or psychological support. The questionnaire is also widely incorporated into longitudinal studies examining fatigue trajectories and recovery following medical or psychological interventions.

Scoring and Psychometric Evaluation

Each questionnaire item is scored using the 7-point Likert response scale, with reverse scoring applied to the designated positively worded items before calculating the overall fatigue score. Individual responses are summed to produce a total fatigue score, with higher scores indicating greater fatigue severity and increased impairment in physical and cognitive functioning.

The psychometric evaluation of the FQ typically includes assessments of internal consistency (Cronbach’s α), construct validity, criterion validity, and factor structure using exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. The instrument has demonstrated satisfactory reliability and validity across working populations and numerous clinical groups and has become one of the standard measures for subjective fatigue assessment. Although the uploaded questionnaire cites the original validation study, it does not provide specific numerical psychometric indices; therefore, exact reliability coefficients cannot be reported here.

Interpretation

Higher FQ scores indicate greater levels of physical and mental fatigue, reflecting increased tiredness, reduced energy, impaired concentration, diminished motivation, and lower daily productivity. Elevated scores may suggest clinically significant fatigue requiring further assessment or intervention, whereas lower scores indicate better physical vitality, cognitive functioning, and overall well-being. Because fatigue is a multidimensional construct, the FQ provides clinicians and researchers with a comprehensive evaluation of both the physical and cognitive components of fatigue, making it particularly useful for monitoring treatment outcomes and functional recovery.

References

Beurskens, A. J., Bültmann, U., Kant, I., Vercoulen, J. H., Bleijenberg, G., & Swaen, G. M. H. (2000). Fatigue among Working People: Validity of a Questionnaire Measure. Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 57(5), 353–357.