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Athlete Mental Reliability Scale (PNS-40)3

Athlete Mental Reliability Scale (PNS-40) Test

Understand how well you stay focused, calm, and ready under pressure in just 8 minutes. Get clear insight into your strengths and stress triggers so training can target what matters most.

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Questions: 408 minutes

08:30

October 2, 2025

October 2, 2025
Material has been updated

October 2, 2025
Material has been published

31,217 views

3,000 completions

2,433 likes

Verified by Daniel Hall

Psychologist with 25 years of experience

Scale Explorer

How the Scales are Structured

example score

4/8

External Significance (ES)

Measures how strongly an athlete’s stress response is influenced by external circumstances and outside evaluation.

Internally guided

Balanced focus

Externally dependent

0 – 2: Internally guided | 3 – 5: Balanced focus | 6 – 8: Externally dependent

A score of 4 indicates a balanced focus where external factors matter but typically do not dominate coping in high-pressure situations.

example score

2/8

Internal Significance (IS)

Measures how strongly an athlete assigns importance to internal feelings and self-reflection when under competitive stress.

Low

Moderate

High

0 – 2: Low | 3 – 5: Moderate | 6 – 8: High

A score of 2 indicates a low tendency to focus on internal emotions and self-analysis during stressful situations, with attention more likely oriented to external cues and actions.

example score

5/8

External Uncertainty (EU)

Measures how strongly an athlete feels challenged by uncertainty stemming from external conditions and changes.

Low

Moderate

High

0 – 2: Low | 3 – 5: Moderate | 6 – 8: High

A score of 5 indicates a moderate sensitivity to external uncertainty, suggesting occasional difficulty staying steady when conditions change unexpectedly.

example score

3/8

Internal Uncertainty (IU)

This scale measures how much internal uncertainty an athlete experiences under competitive stress, reflecting confidence in goals and abilities.

Low uncertainty

Moderate uncertainty

High uncertainty

0 – 2: Low uncertainty | 3 – 5: Moderate uncertainty | 6 – 8: High uncertainty

A score of 3 indicates moderate internal uncertainty, suggesting occasional doubts in high-pressure moments while generally maintaining direction and self-trust.

example score

7/32

Sensitivity to Stressors (StS)

This scale measures how strongly an athlete tends to react to and be affected by competition-related stressors.

Low sensitivity

Moderate sensitivity

High sensitivity

0 – 7: Low sensitivity | 8 – 12: Moderate sensitivity | 13 – 32: High sensitivity

A score of 7 indicates low sensitivity to stress factors, suggesting relatively stable adaptation under competitive pressure.

example score

-4/3

Stability and Distraction Resistance (SaDR)

Assesses resilience to distractions and the stability of an athlete’s functional state under pressure.

Low stability

Moderate stability

High stability

-6 – -1: Low stability | 0 – 2: Moderate stability | 3: High stability

A score of -4 indicates low noise immunity, suggesting concentration and performance may be more easily disrupted by internal or external distractions.

example score

-2/7

Motivational-Energy Component (MEC)

Measures the athlete’s motivation and available energy to sustain effort and pursue competitive goals under pressure.

Low drive/energy

High drive/energy

-10 – -1: Low drive/energy | 0 – 7: High drive/energy

A score of -2 falls in the low drive/energy range, suggesting currently reduced motivation or limited energy to push for maximal effort.

example score

-2/6

Self-Regulation (SR)

Assesses how well an athlete can recognize and regulate their emotional state and behavior under pressure.

Low

Moderate–High

-10 – -1: Low | 0 – 6: Moderate–High

A score of -2 falls in the Low range, suggesting self-regulation may be less consistent in stressful competitive situations.

example score

0/5

Competitive Emotional Stability (CES)

Measures how well an athlete maintains emotional balance and control under competitive stress.

Low resilience

Moderate resilience

High resilience

-12 – -1: Low resilience | 0: Moderate resilience | 1 – 5: High resilience

A score of 0 indicates moderate emotional resilience, suggesting generally stable emotional control in competition with occasional susceptibility to emotional fluctuations.

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DATA-BASED USER COHORTS

Who Usually Takes This Test?

Competitive athletes under pressure

41%OF USERS

Athletes preparing for important competitions who want to understand how they handle stress, stay focused, and recover after mistakes.

Coaches and trainers

34%OF USERS

Coaches who assess mental toughness to tailor training, communication, and pre-competition routines to each athlete.

Sports psychologists and staff

25%OF USERS

Performance and medical support staff who screen stress triggers and emotional control to plan targeted mental skills work.

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.

external significance (es)

Average

5.9

Normal range

4.7 — 7.1

min.

max.

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.

inner significance (is)

Average

3.4

Normal range

2.3 — 4.5

min.

max.

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.

external uncertainty (eu)

Average

5.8

Normal range

4.8 — 6.9

min.

max.

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.

internal uncertainty (iu)

Average

2.8

Normal range

1.5 — 4.2

min.

max.

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.

Sensitivity to Stress Factors (StSF)

Average

9.8

Normal range

4.5 — 15.1

min.

max.

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.

Stability - Noise Immunity (S-NI)

Average

-0.5

Normal range

-1.9 — 0.9

min.

-6

max.

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.

Motivational-Energetic Component (MC)

Average

-5.6

Normal range

-8 — -3.3

min.

-10

max.

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.

Self-regulation (S)

Average

-1

Normal range

-3.1 — 1.1

min.

-10

max.

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.

Competitive Emotional Resilience (CER)

Average

-3.5

Normal range

-6.3 — -0.7

min.

-12

max.

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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SAMPLE QUESTIONS

Example Questions From the Test

The following questions are intended to assess psychological characteristics of your athletic performance. For each question, select one response option. Try not to focus on details; provide general responses based on your recent competitive experience.

- When I am calm and hardly anxious
- When I am in a state of increased arousal
- When I am in a state of strong arousal
- Yes
- Sometimes
- No
- I usually do not think about it
- Sometimes
- Yes

These are 3 of the 40 real questions — the rest appear in the test. No sign-up needed to start.

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WHAT THE TEST MEASURES

About This Assessment

Mental Resilience of an Athlete, PNS-40 Test

Athlete Mental Reliability Scale (PNS-40) Test - Symptoms and Signs

sport

This measure assesses psychological functioning relevant to performance under competitive stress. The Athlete Mental Reliability Scale (PNS-40) is designed to characterize an athlete’s typical responses to pressure, with emphasis on stability of attention, emotional regulation, and coping.

It is a self-report questionnaire with 40 items and takes about 8 minutes to complete. Albert Bandura is cited as the author.

Results are generally interpreted as indicators of mental reliability and potential areas of vulnerability that may affect performance in high-stakes situations. The Athlete Mental Reliability Scale (PNS-40) may be used to inform individualized psychological skills work and to support training or pre-competition planning.

Author: Albert Bandura

Literature: Tenenbaum, G., & Eklund, R. C. Handbook of sport psychology. Wiley. 2007.; Smith, R. E., Smoll, F. L., & Schutz, R. W. Measurement and correlates of sport-specific cognitive and somatic trait anxiety: The Sport Anxiety Scale. Anxiety Research. 1990.