Online Prosocial Behavior Scale (OPBS) Test
How the Scales are Structured
Who Usually Takes This Test?
See How You Compare
Below is a preview of how scores are typically distributed across each scale.
Example Questions From the Test
- Never
- Once
- A few times
- Often
- Every day
- Never
- Once
- Several times
- Often
- Every day
- Never
- Once
- Several times
- Often
- Every day
Online Prosocial Behavior Scale (OPBS) Test - Description and methodology of the test
People reflecting on supportive digital relationships may use the Online Prosocial Behavior Scale (OPBS) Test to examine how they participate in online kindness and assistance. By separating the support a person provides online from the support they receive, this online prosocial behavior test gives readers a structured snapshot of those two patterns.
What This Assessment Explores
The questionnaire focuses on supportive exchanges in online communication. Items cover friendly remarks, encouragement, comfort, approval, practical assistance, and emotional support. Some ask what the respondent does for another person; paired items ask what another person does for the respondent. Together, these paired items make this prosocial behavior scale specific to two directions: support the respondent offers and support the respondent receives.
The result has two dimensions:
- Receiving Help Online (10-50) assesses the frequency and willingness to receive help from other users online. Low 10-22 indicates less frequent receipt, Average 23-42 reflects a balanced experience, and High 43-50 indicates more active engagement with received support.
- Online Helping (10-50) assesses the tendency to help other users online. Low support 10-24 indicates less pronounced helping, Moderate support 25-43 reflects moderate willingness, and High 44-50 indicates more pronounced online prosocial behavior.
Methodology and Scientific Basis
Each statement asks how often an online interaction occurred and uses five ordered responses from Never to Every day, with intermediate choices such as Once, Several times, A few times, and Often. Paired wording separates giving from receiving, while examples such as sending an emoji anchor the setting in digital communication.
Responses are combined into the two dimensions, and the bands label levels. The displayed bands are descriptive: no clinical cutoff interpretation is given, and the item-level scoring formula is not specified, so the ranges should not be used to infer how much any single response contributes.
The closest reference is Online Prosocial Behavior Scale (Erreygers et al., 2018), covering online prosocial acts and the actor-recipient distinction. This questionnaire is conceptually consistent with that instrument, not its validated reproduction or adaptation. A second study by the same authors examined links between acting and receiving prosocial behavior online, providing context for both directions, not validating this questionnaire. This questionnaire measures online helping behavior through self-report, producing a snapshot shaped by memory, self-awareness, and relationships; the result is best used for reflection.
- Erreygers, Sara; Vandebosch, Heidi; Vranjes, Ivana; Baillien, Elfi; De Witte, Hans. (2018). Development of a measure of adolescents’ online prosocial behavior. Journal of Children and Media, 12(4), 448–464. 10.1080/17482798.2018.1431558
- Erreygers, Sara; Vandebosch, Heidi; Vranjes, Ivana; Baillien, Elfi; De Witte, Hans. (2018). Positive or negative spirals of online behavior? Exploring reciprocal associations between being the actor and the recipient of prosocial and antisocial behavior online. New Media & Society, 20(9), 3437–3456. 10.1177/1461444817749518
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