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Coping Strategies Questionnaire (SRCS)

Coping Strategies Questionnaire (SRCS) Test

Understand how kids ages 7 to 11 cope with tough situations in just 5 minutes. Get a quick, clear snapshot of coping patterns to guide support, build resilience, and target needs fast.

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Questions: 225 minutes

Hi! My name is Freudly, i am an AI therapist, I will give you an interpretation of the test after you complete it.

08:30

October 2, 2025

October 2, 2025
Material has been updated

October 2, 2025
Material has been published

15897 views

886 completions

763 likes

Scale Explorer

How the Scales are Structured

example score

3/5

Externalization (E)

Measures how often a child copes with stress by expressing negative emotions outwardly, such as through anger, aggression, or blaming others.

Low

Moderate

High

0 – 1: Low | 2 – 3: Moderate | 4 – 5: High

A score of 3 indicates a moderate tendency to use outward expression of negative emotions as a coping strategy in stressful situations.

example score

2/5

Internalization (I)

Measures how often a child uses inward-focused coping such as self-talk, self-reflection, and self-blame when stressed.

Low

Moderate

High

0 – 1: Low | 2 – 3: Moderate | 4 – 5: High

A score of 2 indicates a moderate tendency to cope by internalizing, meaning the child sometimes turns stress inward through self-reflection or self-blame.

example score

3/5

Distancing (D)

Measures how often the child copes with stress by psychologically stepping back or disengaging from the situation.

Low distancing

Moderate distancing

High distancing

0 – 1: Low distancing | 2 – 3: Moderate distancing | 4 – 5: High distancing

A score of 3 indicates a moderate tendency to use distancing, suggesting the child sometimes steps back from stressful situations rather than engaging directly.

example score

1/5

Seeking Social Support (SSS)

Measures how often a child seeks help or comfort from other people when faced with stress or difficulty.

Low

Moderate

High

0 – 1: Low | 2 – 3: Moderate | 4 – 5: High

A score of 1 falls in the Low range, suggesting the child rarely turns to others for support when stressed.

example score

3/5

Problem Solving (PS)

Measures how often a child uses active, solution-focused coping when facing stressful situations.

Low

Moderate

High

0 – 1: Low | 2 – 3: Moderate | 4 – 5: High

A score of 3 indicates a moderate tendency to use problem-solving strategies, suggesting the child sometimes tries to find and carry out solutions when stressed.

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DATA-BASED USER COHORTS

Who Usually Takes This Test?

School psychologists and counselors

41%OF USERS

They use it for quick screening to understand how a child handles stress and to plan targeted support at school.

Child therapists in clinics

34%OF USERS

They administer it during intake or early sessions to map coping patterns and guide treatment goals for emotional or behavioral concerns.

Teachers and support staff

25%OF USERS

They rely on it to spot common coping styles in a class or group and decide when to involve parents or specialists.

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

RESULTS YOU CAN ACTUALLY USE

What You’ll See After You Finish the Test

Scale Results
— Explained Clearly

Your scores across each test scale, translated into plain, usable insights. Not just numbers, but what they actually mean for your daily life, emotional state, and overall well-being.

AI-Powered
Interpretation

A structured, clinically grounded explanation. Our AI analyzes patterns and relationships between scales to provide a coherent interpretation — without alarmist language.

Statistical
Comparison

See how you compare to others. Your scores are placed in a statistical context, showing percentiles and trends based on anonymized platform data to help you understand what`s typical.

Practical
Recommendations

Actionable guidance tailored to your profile. Receive clear, realistic suggestions you can apply immediately — focused on coping, self-regulation, and realistic next steps.

AI-Detected
Insights

Key patterns you might not notice on your own. Surfacing subtle connections in your responses that help you better understand what may be driving your current results.

Discuss with
an AI Psychologist

Clarify, reflect, and explore right away. Talk through your outcomes, ask questions, and explore meanings in a calm, non-diagnostic dialogue environment.

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Used in 52+ countries

Benchmarking

See How You Compare

Once you finish the test, your results will be compared with real-world data from people in your country.
Below is a preview of the benchmarks we use to place your score in context.

Externalization (E)

Average

1.4

Normal range

0.7 — 2.1

min.

max.

majority

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear here so you can see where you land.

Internalization (I)

Average

2.6

Normal range

1.8 — 3.4

min.

max.

majority

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear here so you can see where you land.

Distancing (D)

Average

2.4

Normal range

1.6 — 3.2

min.

max.

majority

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear here so you can see where you land.

Seeking Social Support (SSS)

Average

2.9

Normal range

2.1 — 3.6

min.

max.

majority

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear here so you can see where you land.

Problem Solving (PS)

Average

1.9

Normal range

1 — 2.7

min.

max.

majority

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear here so you can see where you land.

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CLEAR ANSWERS TO COMMON QUESTIONS

Frequently Asked Questions

Any questions left?

What does this questionnaire measure?

It measures how often a child uses different coping strategies in challenging situations. It provides a brief profile across five coping categories.

Who is the questionnaire designed for?

It is designed for children ages 7 to 11. It can be used in individual or group settings.

How long does it take to complete and how many items are included?

It takes about 5 minutes to complete. It includes 22 items.

What types of coping strategies are included?

The items cover problem-solving, seeking social support, distancing, internalization, and externalization. Each item asks about the frequency of a specific response.

How should responses be interpreted and used?

Scores indicate which coping approaches are used more or less often relative to other approaches. Results are typically used to guide support planning and to monitor change over time.

WHAT THE TEST MEASURES

About This Assessment

Coping Strategies Questionnaire (SRCS) Test

coping behavior

This questionnaire is designed to quickly characterize how children manage challenging or stressful situations. The Coping Strategies Questionnaire (SRCS) is intended for use with school-age children and can be administered in individual or group settings.

It includes 22 items and typically takes about 5 minutes to complete. Items ask the child to indicate how often they use specific coping responses, supporting a structured profile across broad coping domains (e.g., problem-focused efforts, seeking social support, distancing/avoidance, internalizing responses, and externalizing responses).

Results from the Coping Strategies Questionnaire (SRCS) can help clinicians and school-based providers identify coping patterns that may inform case conceptualization, intervention planning, and monitoring of coping skills over time. Interpretation should consider developmental level, context, and corroborating information from other sources.

Author: richard-s-lazarus, susan-folkman

Literature: Lerner, R. M. (Ed.). Handbook of child psychology and developmental science (7th ed.). Wiley. 2015.; Compas, B. E., Connor-Smith, J. K., Saltzman, H., Thomsen, A. H., & Wadsworth, M. E. Coping with stress during childhood and adolescence: Problems, progress, and potential in theory and research. Psychological Bulletin. 2001.; Kochenderfer-Ladd, V., & Skinner, K. Children’s coping strategies. Developmental Psychology. 2002.

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