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State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (Form Y)

STAI
psychologyhealth sciencesLicensed: permission required

Permission: Licensed: permission required. Obtain permission from the copyright holder before using it in a study.

A 40-item self-report inventory measuring two distinct anxiety constructs: state anxiety (how one feels right now) and trait anxiety (how one generally feels), 20 items each.

Items
40
Response format
4-point Likert (intensity for state, frequency for trait)
Version
1.0
Subscales
2

Ready-to-cite methods sentence

Anxiety was assessed using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI; Spielberger et al., 1983), a 40-item measure distinguishing state from trait anxiety, each subscale showing high internal consistency (α ≈ .90).

Citing this in a methods section? This scale spans more than one discipline, so the style depends on where you publish. See the APA 7 or Vancouver guides, or compare all six citation styles.

Permission required

Importing STAI into a Surveyor study is disabled: Folio holds the instrument’s metadata, not a license to pass on its wording. The citation, scoring and reliability details on this page are free to use and cite.

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Reliability & validation

Validation population
Normative samples of working adults, college and high school students, and clinical patients (Spielberger et al., 1983)
Cronbach's α
0.9–0.92

Subscales

State Anxiety (S-Anxiety)Trait Anxiety (T-Anxiety)

Known limitations

Licensed instrument (permission required from Mind Garden). State and trait items share wording, which can inflate their correlation, and several items load on general negative affect rather than anxiety specifically.

Original citation

Spielberger, C. D., Gorsuch, R. L., Lushene, R., Vagg, P. R., & Jacobs, G. A. (1983). Manual for the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (Form Y). Consulting Psychologists Press.

This instrument is licensed. Folio does not distribute its item wording. Obtain permission from the copyright holder before using it in your study.

Questions researchers ask

What does the STAI measure?

A 40-item self-report inventory measuring two distinct anxiety constructs: state anxiety (how one feels right now) and trait anxiety (how one generally feels), 20 items each.

How many items does the STAI have?

The State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (Form Y) (STAI) has 40 items across 2 subscales: State Anxiety (S-Anxiety), Trait Anxiety (T-Anxiety).

Is the STAI free to use?

The STAI is licensed. You must obtain permission from the copyright holder before using it in a study. Folio does not distribute its item wording without that permission.

Is the STAI reliable?

Validation studies report Cronbach's α of 0.9–0.92. See the reliability section for the population studied and full statistics.

Who developed the STAI, and how do I cite it?

Spielberger, C. D., Gorsuch, R. L., Lushene, R., Vagg, P. R., & Jacobs, G. A. (1983). Manual for the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (Form Y). Consulting Psychologists Press.

Or track new research mentioning STAI as it publishes

Related scales

BAIBeck Anxiety InventoryDASS-21Depression Anxiety Stress Scales-21GAD-7Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7HADSHospital Anxiety and Depression ScaleSIASSocial Interaction Anxiety ScaleAUDITAlcohol Use Disorders Identification Test

Library entry verified September 2026. Metadata is provided for reference; item wording is available inside Folio Surveyor, subject to each instrument's licensing.