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ENTRESDERUZHARHIID
Home/Historical IQ Tests/State-Trait Anxiety Inventory
1970 · SPIELBERGER, GORSUCH & LUSHENE · 10 SOURCES

Right now, or in general?

The STAI has two 20-item scales. One asks how you feel at this moment (state anxiety); the other asks how you generally feel (trait anxiety). It became one of the most widely used anxiety questionnaires.5

Watch a week in two numbers →Cite this page
FORM Y-1 · STATE20 ITEMS · 1–4
"How do you feel right now?"
FORM Y-2 · TRAIT20 ITEMS · 1–4
"How do you generally feel?"
This is history, not a self-test.This page doesn't reproduce the inventory and can't assess your anxiety. If anxiety is getting in the way of your life, a doctor or mental-health professional can help.

One idea, two time frames

The inventory was designed as one set of questions that, with the right instructions, could target a particular kind of anxiety.1 Its 40 items split evenly between the two scales.5

StateY-1 · STAI-S
Feelings at a particular momentTemporary fear, tension and anxiety in a specific or recent situation.4Example item: "I am relaxed"6
TraitY-2 · STAI-T
How you generally feelA stable tendency to see situations as threatening and to react with anxiety as a habit.3Example item: "I feel satisfied with myself"7
1 → 4each item rated from "not at all" to "very much so"2
20–80score range for each scale; higher means more anxiety3
Cut-offsa score above the cut-off indicates clinically relevant anxiety symptoms5
EXPLORE · A WEEK IN TWO NUMBERS

Why the state score moves and the trait score doesn't

Give a fictional person a general tendency, then tap each day to change what happens. The "right now" score follows events; the "in general" score stays put.

CalmOrdinaryDeadlineExamHoliday

Invented numbers on the STAI's 20–80 range, for illustration. Not real items, norms or cut-offs.

State: right nowTrait: in generalTap a day to change its event

The numbers back the distinction

If the two scales measure what they claim, trait scores should hold steady on retest while state scores drift. Spielberger's figures fit: test-retest correlations of .54 for the state scale and .86 for the trait scale.9

Low retest agreement would count against most tests. For a state scale it's intended, because moods change.

State scaler = .54
Trait scaler = .86

1964, 1970 or 1983?

1964First constructedOne source says Spielberger, Gorsuch and Lushene built the original form in 1964.10
1970The first manualManual for the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, Consulting Psychologists Press, Palo Alto. The early version was called Form X.8
1983Form YRevised to its current form, with the state and trait scales labelled Y-1 and Y-2. The manual was later published by Mind Garden.5

Most sources credit the 1970 manual to Spielberger, Gorsuch and Lushene.8 One also lists Vagg and Jacobs as 1970 collaborators, although they appear on the 1983 Form Y manual.5,7

More than 30 languages, and into drug trials

LanguagesAdapted into more than 30 languages for cross-cultural research and clinical practice.10
TurkeyA Turkish adaptation by Öner and Le Compte in 1985, with its own reliability and validity study.3
SpainThe trait scale has been adapted into Spanish.3
DiagnosisUsed in the differential diagnosis of anxiety and depression.1
Clinical trialsUsed in medication trials, and as the trait measure in modern study protocols.8

References

  1. [1]Wikipedia contributors. State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (accessed 30 Sept 2026).en.wikipedia.org
  2. [2]Efficacy trial of a dissonance-based eating disorder program: protocol NCT03796091 (STAI Form Y). ClinicalTrials.gov (PDF).cdn.clinicaltrials.gov
  3. [3]State–Trait Anxiety Inventory Self Evaluation Questionnaire, Form Y (STAI). ResearchGate.researchgate.net
  4. [4]State-trait anxiety inventory (STAI). ResearchGate.researchgate.net
  5. [5]State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). EBSCO Research Starters: Health and Medicine.ebsco.com
  6. [6]Validation of the state version of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. University of Texas at Tyler, ScholarWorks (PDF).scholarworks.uttyler.edu
  7. [7]Spielberger, C. D., Gorsuch, R. L., Lushene, R. E., Vagg, P. R., & Jacobs, G. A. (1983). Manual for the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (Form Y1–Y2). Consulting Psychologists Press. ResearchGate record.researchgate.net
  8. [8]Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory: list of references incl. the 1970 and 1983 manuals and Sesti (2000). OUCI.ouci.dntb.gov.ua
  9. [9]State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). Statistics Solutions (PDF).statisticssolutions.com
  10. [10]State Trait Anxiety Inventory: background. Advanced Assessments (PDF).advancedassessments.co.uk
HOW TO CITE THIS PAGE
What's Your IQ. (2026). State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (1970). In Historical IQ Tests Archive. Retrieved September 30, 2026, from /en/historical-iq-tests/state-trait-anxiety-1970
EDITORIAL RECORD
First published2026
Last reviewed30 September 2026
Sources10, all from visible search results
Open questions1964 construction date; what changed from Form X to Y; 1970 co-authors
Canonical URLwhats-your-iq.com/en/historical-iq-tests/state-trait-anxiety-1970

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Part of the Historical IQ Tests Archive. Editorial content under CC BY-SA 4.0. The STAI is published by Mind Garden; only two example items quoted in research papers appear here.
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