Daily Stress Inventory (DSI) Test

Understand how daily stressors affect you in about 11 minutes. With 58 items, it tracks triggers and stress load over time to show progress and support care decisions.

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Questions: 5811 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

21,179 views

1,457 completions

1,293 likes

Verified by Daniel Hall

Psychologist with 25 years of experience

Scale Explorer

How the Scales are Structured

example score

5/7

Average Impact (AI)

Measures the average perceived intensity of a single daily stressor event.

Low intensity

Moderate to high intensity

0 – 2.9: Low intensity | 3 – 7: Moderate to high intensity

A score of 5 indicates that, on average, individual stressful events over the last 24 hours were experienced as moderately to highly intense.

example score

91/200

Total Score (TS)

The Sum scale measures the total cumulative daily stress burden by combining the number of stressors and their rated intensity over the last 24 hours.

Low total stress

High total stress

0 – 70: Low total stress | 71 – 200: High total stress

A score of 91 falls in the High total stress range, indicating a substantial cumulative stress load from the day’s events as perceived by the individual.

example score

30/58

Frequency (F)

Measures how many stressful events a person reports experiencing in the past 24 hours.

Low frequency

High frequency

0 – 25: Low frequency | 26 – 58: High frequency

A score of 30 falls in the High frequency range, suggesting a greater-than-usual number of daily stressors in the last 24 hours.

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DATA-BASED USER COHORTS

Who Usually Takes This Test?

People feeling daily overwhelm

41%OF USERS

They want to pinpoint which everyday situations trigger stress and how strongly they react from day to day.

Therapy and counseling clients

34%OF USERS

They use it alongside psychological support to track whether daily stress load and intensity are decreasing over time.

Students and busy professionals

25%OF USERS

They take it to understand how workload, deadlines, and routine hassles add up and affect their well-being.

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

RESULTS YOU CAN ACTUALLY USE

Scale Results
— Explained Clearly

Your scores across each test scale are translated into plain, usable insights. You won’t just get numbers — you’ll learn how your results impact your daily life, emotional state, and overall well-being.

AI-Powered
Interpretation

You’ll receive a structured, clinically-grounded explanation. Our AI analyzes patterns and relationships between scales to provide a coherent interpretation, without exaggerated language.

Statistical
Comparison

See how your results compare to others. Anonymized platform data is used to create a percentile scale, which identifies whether your results are typical.

Practical
Recommendations

You’ll receive clear, actionable guidance tailored to your profile. These easy-to-implement suggestions focus on coping, self-regulation, and realistic next steps.

AI-Powered
Insights

Get insights on behavioral and thought patterns you might not notice on your own. By uncovering subtle connections between your responses, you’ll better understand what may be driving your current results.

Discuss with
an AI Therapist

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

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Used in 52+ countries

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.

Moderate workload (Mw)

Average

4.8

Normal range

3.7 — 6

min.

max.

Majority

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Sum (S)

Average

82.5

Normal range

56.7 — 108.4

min.

max.

200

Majority

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Frequency (F)

Average

40.6

Normal range

30.4 — 50.7

min.

max.

Majority

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

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CLEAR ANSWERS TO COMMON QUESTIONS

Frequently Asked Questions

What does this questionnaire measure?

It measures exposure to common daily stressors and the perceived intensity of each event. Results summarize event frequency and overall and average stress impact.

What time period should be used when answering?

Use the past 24 hours. Include events that occurred since the same time on the previous day.

How should event intensity be rated?

Rate each event based on how stressful it felt at the time it occurred. Use the response options as anchors and select the closest level.

What if an item did not occur in the past 24 hours?

Mark it as not occurring and do not assign an intensity rating. Only events that occurred should receive a severity rating.

How are scores summarized?

Scores typically include the number of events reported, the total severity across events, and the average severity per event. Higher values indicate more frequent stressors, greater overall load, or higher perceived intensity.

WHAT THE TEST MEASURES

About This Assessment

Daily Stress Inventory (DSI) Test - Symptoms and Signs

stress level

This measure is designed to capture exposure to common, day-to-day stressors and the respondent’s subjective appraisal of their impact. The Daily Stress Inventory (DSI) asks individuals to recall events from the prior 24 hours and indicate which stressors occurred and how stressful each was perceived to be.

The questionnaire includes 58 items and typically takes about 11 minutes to complete. Results are commonly summarized as the number of reported stressors and indices reflecting overall and average perceived stressfulness, supporting brief monitoring of daily stress in clinical or research contexts.

The Daily Stress Inventory (DSI) may be used to track change over time, identify patterns or triggers in everyday stress exposure, and complement outcome monitoring when evaluating psychosocial interventions.

Author: richard-s-lazarus, susan-folkman

Literature: Brantley, P. J., Waggoner, C. D., Jones, G. N., & Rappaport, N. B. A daily stress inventory: Development, reliability, and validity. Journal of Behavioral Medicine. 1987.

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