THE ANXIETY CONTROL QUESTIONNAIRE (ACQ)

This 30-item questionnaire assesses an individual’s perceived ability to control anxiety-inducing situations.

INSTRUCTIONS

Listed below are a number of statements describing a set of beliefs. Please read each statement carefully and, on the 0-5 scale given, indicate how much you think each statement is typical of you.

0 = Strongly disagree

1 = Moderately disagree

2 = Slightly disagree

3 = Slightly agree

4 = Moderately agree

5 = Strongly agree

---

ACQ

1. I am usually able to avoid threat quite easily
2. How well I cope with difficult situations depends on whether I have outside help.
3. When I am put under stress, I am likely to lose control.
4. I can usually stop my anxiety from showing.
5. When I am frightened by something, there is generally nothing I can do.
6. My emotions seem to have a life of their own.
7. There is little I can do to influence people’s judgements of me.
8. Whether I can successfully escape a frightening situation is always a matter of chance with me.
9. I often shake uncontrollably.
10. I can usually put worrisome thoughts out of my mind easily.
11. When I am in a stressful situation, I am able to stop myself from breathing too hard.
12. I can usually influence the degree to which a situation is potentially threatening to me.
13. I am able to control my level of anxiety.
14. There is little I can do to change frightening events.
15. The extent to which a difficult situation resolves itself has nothing to do with my actions.
16. If something is going to hurt me, it will happen no matter what I do.
17. I can usually relax when I want.
18. When I am under stress, I am not always sure how I will react.
19. I can usually make sure people like me if I work at it.
20. Most events that make me anxious are outside my control.
21. I always know exactly how I will react to difficult situations.
22. I am unconcerned if I become anxious in a difficult situation, because I am confident in my ability to cope with my symptoms.
23. What people think of me is largely outside my control.
24. I usually find it hard to deal with difficult problems.
25. When I hear that someone has a serious illness, I worry that I am next.
26. When I am anxious, I find it difficult to focus on anything other than my anxiety.
27. I am able to cope as effectively with unexpected anxiety as I am with anxiety that I expect to occur.
28. I sometimes think, “Why even bother to try to cope with my anxiety when nothing I do seems to affect how frequently or intensely I experience it?”.
29. I often have the ability to get along with “difficult” people.
30. I will avoid conflict due to my inability to successfully resolve it

---

SCORING

A – First reverse score items 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 14, 15, 16, 18, 20, 23, 24, 25, 26 ,28,and 30

Here is how to score them:

5: Strongly disagree; 4: Moderately disagree

3: Slightly disagree; 2: Slightly agree;

1: Moderately agree; 0: Strongly agree

B – Second, just add total scores. Higher scores are indicative of greater perceived control. In addition to a total score, you can also gauge how much control you feel you have over (a) yourself and (b) your environment.

(a) Control over internal reactions: items 4, 10, 11, 13, 17, 21, 22, 27.

(b) Control over external events: items 2, 5, 7, 8, 12, 14, 15, 16, 19, 20, 23, 24, 25, 29, and 30.

Reference:

Rapee, R. M., Craske, M. G., Brown, T. A., & Barlow, D. H. (1996). Measurement of perceived control over anxiety-related events. Behavior Therapy, 27(2), 279-293.