The RSQ can also form part of a more general assessment of individuals for development purposes, especially if stress has been identified as an important factor

The Resilience Scales Questionnaire (RSQ) provides a multi-dimensional assessment of the ways in which people react to difficult or challenging experiences.

It was designed to reflect the cognitive, behavioural and emotional elements of resilience and describe coping styles in terms of attitudes, beliefs and typical behaviour, in five general areas:

• Self-esteem
  Attitude to and perception of self in terms of self-esteem, personal confidence and competence.
  
  
• Optimism
  Attitude to and perception of the world in terms of optimism, fairness, and future prospects.
  
  
• Self-discipline
  How someone manages their behaviour in terms of determination, perseverance and reliability.
  
  
• Control
  How someone systematically manages the environment and their ability to adapt.
  
  
• Emotional non-defensiveness
  How someone feels in terms of openness, tension and tolerance.

The RSQ has been constructed so that it is resistant to ‘faking’ and contains a ‘managing your image’ scale. Care has also been taken to make sure that it does not have a ‘clinical’ feel.