World Assumptions Scale (WAS) Test

With 32 questions and a six-minute completion time, the World Assumptions Scale (WAS) Test explores how you view luck, other people, the world, and yourself. Your profile can highlight patterns in trust, perceived control, meaning, justice, and self-worth, supporting thoughtful self-reflection about everyday interpretations and expectations.

Questions: 326 minutes

World Assumptions Scale (WAS) Test: agreement scale card

October 2, 2025October 2, 2025Material has been updatedOctober 2, 2025Material has been published

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3,458 completions

2,999 likes

Daniel Hall Psychologist · Test reviewer

2,999 likes

Scale Explorer

How the Scales are Structured

Benevolence of the WorldBotW

Measures how strongly a person believes the world is generally kind and well-disposed toward them rather than threatening.

example score2/6

2/6Low benevolenceexample score

1 – 3.4Low benevolence

3.5 – 5.4Moderate benevolence

5.5 – 6High benevolence

A score of 2 falls in the Low benevolence range, suggesting a stronger tendency to perceive the world as unsafe or hostile rather than supportive.

Benevolence of PeopleBoP

Measures how strongly a person believes that people around them are generally kind and act with integrity.

example score4/6

4/6Balanced trustexample score

1 – 3.1Low trust

3.2 – 5Balanced trust

5.1 – 6High trust

A score of 4 falls in the Balanced trust range, suggesting a generally cautious but not strongly suspicious view of others’ intentions.

Justice of the WorldJotW

Measures the extent to which a person believes the world is fair and events follow understandable rules rather than being random and unjust.

example score3/6

3/6Moderate belief in justiceexample score

1 – 2.9Low belief in justice

3 – 4.9Moderate belief in justice

5 – 6High belief in justice

A score of 3 indicates a moderate belief that the world is generally just and predictable, though this view may not feel fully stable in all situations.

Controllability of the WorldCotW

Measures how strongly a person believes that life events are predictable and can be influenced through regular patterns or personal actions.

example score3/6

3/6Low controllabilityexample score

1 – 3.3Low controllability

3.4 – 5Moderate controllability

5.1 – 6High controllability

A score of 3 suggests a low sense of controllability, with events more often perceived as happening unpredictably and being hard to influence.

Randomness as a PrincipleRaaP

Measures how strongly a person believes that events happen randomly rather than following understandable patterns.

example score3/6

3/6Moderate randomnessexample score

1 – 2.6Low randomness

2.7 – 4.7Moderate randomness

4.8 – 6High randomness

A score of 3 falls in the Moderate randomness range, suggesting you somewhat see events as partly unpredictable while still expecting some regularity.

Self-WorthSW

Assesses how strongly a person feels a sense of self-worth and personal significance.

example score3/6

3/6Low self-worthexample score

1 – 3.4Low self-worth

3.5 – 5.3Moderate self-worth

5.4 – 6High self-worth

A score of 3 falls in the Low self-worth range, suggesting a reduced sense of personal value and significance relative to this scale.

Degree of Self-ControlDoSC

Measures the extent to which a person believes they can control their actions and influence events.

example score4/6

4/6Moderate self-control beliefexample score

1 – 3.6Low self-control belief

3.7 – 5.3Moderate self-control belief

5.4 – 6High self-control belief

A score of 4 falls in the moderate range, suggesting a generally present but not fully stable sense of being able to regulate your actions and affect outcomes.

Luck/FortuneL

Assesses how strongly a person perceives themselves as generally lucky and favored by circumstances.

example score5/6

5/6Moderate luck beliefexample score

1 – 3Low luck belief

3.1 – 5.1Moderate luck belief

5.2 – 6High luck belief

A score of 5 falls in the Moderate luck belief range, suggesting you tend to view yourself as fairly fortunate overall, though not consistently strongly lucky.

General Belief in the Benevolence of the WorldGBitBotW

Measures overall trust and positive expectations about the surrounding world, integrating beliefs about the benevolence of the world and the kindness of people.

example score3/6

3/6Low trustexample score

1 – 3.6Low trust

3.6 – 6Higher trust

A score of 3 falls in the Low trust range, suggesting a generally cautious or less positive view of the world's and people's kindness.

General Belief in the Meaningfulness of the WorldGBitMotW

Measures how strongly a person believes that the world is governed by meaningful laws rather than random chance.

example score3/6

3/6Low meaningfulnessexample score

1 – 3.5Low meaningfulness

3.6 – 6High meaningfulness

A score of 3 indicates a lower tendency to perceive events as meaningfully ordered, with a greater sense that what happens may be arbitrary or hard to explain.

Beliefs About Self-WorthBASW

Measures belief in one’s own worth, including self-esteem, sense of significance, self-regulation, and perceived luck.

example score3/6

3/6Lowexample score

1 – 3.5Low

3.6 – 6High

A score of 3 falls in the Low range, suggesting reduced confidence in personal value and self-regulation compared with higher scores.

just completed the test

DATA-BASED USER COHORTS

Who Usually Takes This Test?

After trauma or crisis

44%OF USERS

People who have been through a traumatic event or severe stress and want to understand how it changed their sense of safety, trust, and control.

Low mood and depression

33%OF USERS

Those experiencing depression, hopelessness, or emotional numbness who want to identify destructive beliefs that keep them stuck.

Therapy focus and tracking

23%OF USERS

Clients already in therapy who want a quick check of which core assumptions need attention and how they shift over time.

BASED ON AGGREGATED, ANONYMIZED DATA FROM TENS OF THOUSANDS OF FREUDLY USERS.

Benchmarking

See How You Compare

Once you complete the test, your results are compared with real-world data from people in your country.
Below is a preview of how scores are typically distributed across each scale.

Shaded area — where most people score

Dot — the average

You — your score lands on each curve after the test— your score, after the test

The Benevolence of the WorldTBotW

You?

Average4

Typical rangeTypical3.2 – 4.8

Possible1 – 6

The Kindness of PeopleTKoP

You?

Average3

Typical rangeTypical2.4 – 3.7

Possible1 – 6

Justice of the WorldJotW

You?

Average4.2

Typical rangeTypical3.4 – 4.9

Possible1 – 6

Controllability of the worldCotw

You?

Average3.3

Typical rangeTypical2.5 – 4

Possible1 – 6

Randomness as a PrincipleRaaP

You?

Average2.7

Typical rangeTypical2 – 3.5

Possible1 – 6

The Value of the SelfTVotS

You?

Average4.2

Typical rangeTypical3.5 – 4.9

Possible1 – 6

Degree of self-controlDos

You?

Average2.3

Typical rangeTypical1.7 – 2.9

Possible1 – 6

Degree of luck/favorabilityDol

You?

Average4.6

Typical rangeTypical4 – 5.3

Possible1 – 6

General Attitude Toward the Kindness of the WorldGATtKotW

You?

Average3.5

Typical rangeTypical2.5 – 4.4

Possible1 – 6

General Attitude Towards the Meaningfulness of the WorldGATtMotW

You?

Average3

Typical rangeTypical2.3 – 3.7

Possible1 – 6

Belief About One's Own WorthBAOOW

You?

Average2.6

Typical rangeTypical1.7 – 3.5

Possible1 – 6

Featured On

SAMPLE QUESTIONS

Example Questions From the Test

- Strongly disagree
- Disagree
- Somewhat disagree
- Somewhat agree
- Agree
- Strongly agree
- Strongly disagree
- Disagree
- Somewhat disagree
- Somewhat agree
- Agree
- Strongly agree
- Strongly disagree
- Disagree
- Somewhat disagree
- Somewhat agree
- Agree
- Strongly agree

These are 3 of the 32 real questions — the rest appear in the test. No sign-up needed to start.

WHAT THE TEST MEASURES

World Assumptions Scale (WAS) Test - Description and methodology of the test

depression

irrational beliefs

cbt

ptsd

People who want to examine the beliefs shaping their interpretation of life can use the World Assumptions Scale (WAS) Test as a structured self-report exercise. This world assumptions questionnaire suits readers reflecting on safety, luck, human intentions, personal value, and influence over events. The profile organizes these themes into a practical starting point for journaling, conversation, or focused self-reflection.

What This Assessment Explores

The questionnaire examines assumptions that can shape reactions to setbacks, relationships, uncertainty, and opportunity. Its statements ask whether outcomes seem deserved or accidental, whether people are caring or hostile, whether life has order, and whether the respondent feels valuable and able to influence events. The intended focus is everyday interpretation rather than a single personality type.

The dimensions cover views of the world, trust in people, perceived justice and randomness, personal luck, self-worth, and agency. WAS test results can form a mixed profile: someone may trust others while feeling unlucky, or see life as meaningful while doubting personal control. These tendencies describe an outlook, and their relevance depends on the situation considered. They can help a respondent notice expectations that guide choices, reactions, and interpretations without treating those expectations as fixed traits.

Methodology and Scientific Basis

Six-point responses run from Strongly disagree to Strongly agree and produce separate dimension scores. The displayed scales are:

Luck/Fortune (1-6) shows personal luck; General Belief in the Benevolence of the World (1-6), Benevolence of the World (1-6), and Benevolence of People (1-6) show trust.
General Belief in the Meaningfulness of the World (1-6), Justice of the World (1-6), Controllability of the World (1-6), and Randomness as a Principle (1-6) show perceived order, justice, control, and chance.
Beliefs About Self-Worth (1-6) and Self-Worth (1-6) show self-regard; Degree of Self-Control (1-6) shows perceived agency.

All scales use 1-6; the catalogue supplies low, moderate, balanced, higher, and high bands for score interpretation. Conceptually, this form aligns with World Assumption Scale (Janoff-Bulman, 1989) and Janoff-Bulman’s 1992 framework, but is not established as a validated adaptation. Kaler et al. (2008) and van Bruggen et al. (2018) provide psychometric context, not norms for this version. As a beliefs about the world test, it relies on self-report: context, self-awareness, and response bias can shift the profile, so read it as a reflection prompt.

Author: R. Janoff-Bulman

Literature:

Janoff-Bulman, R. (1989). Assumptive worlds and the stress of traumatic events: Applications of the schema construct. Social Cognition, 7(2), 113-136. 10.1521/soco.1989.7.2.113
Janoff-Bulman, Ronnie. (1992). Shattered assumptions: Towards a new psychology of trauma. New York: Free Press.
Kaler, M. E., Frazier, P., Anders, S. L., Tashiro, T., Tomich, P., Tennen, H., & Park, C. (2008). Assessing the psychometric properties of the world assumption scale. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 21(3), 326-332. 10.1002/jts.20343
van Bruggen, V., ten Klooster, P. M., van der Aa, N., Smith, A. J. M., Westerhof, G. J., & Glas, G. (2018). Structural validity of the World Assumption Scale. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 31(6), 816-825. 10.1002/jts.22348

Updated: 2025-10-02

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