Home
Psychological tests
Perception of Success Questionnaire (POSQ)

Perception of Success Questionnaire (POSQ) Test

In 3 minutes, learn whether an athlete defines success through personal growth or outperforming others. Fast, 12 items give clear insight to tailor coaching, motivation, and mental support.

Start Online Test

Questions: 123 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

17018 views

1087 completions

964 likes

Scale Explorer

How the Scales are Structured

example score

16/30

Task Orientation (TO)

Task Orientation measures the extent to which an athlete defines success through skill development, effort, and progress toward personal goals.

Lower task focus

Moderate task focus

Higher task focus

6 – 13: Lower task focus | 14 – 22: Moderate task focus | 23 – 30: Higher task focus

A score of 16 indicates a moderate task focus, suggesting a fairly consistent emphasis on improving skills and meeting personal goals, with room to strengthen persistence and process-based motivation.

example score

18/30

Ego Orientation (EO)

This scale measures how strongly an athlete defines success through self-affirmation and outperforming others via interpersonal comparisons.

Low comparison focus

Moderate comparison focus

High comparison focus

6 – 13: Low comparison focus | 14 – 22: Moderate comparison focus | 23 – 30: High comparison focus

A score of 18 indicates a moderate tendency to judge success by doing better than others rather than primarily by personal improvement.

Start Online Test

just completed the test

DATA-BASED USER COHORTS

Who Usually Takes This Test?

Competitive athletes in-season

44%OF USERS

Athletes take it to see whether their motivation comes more from personal improvement or from winning and outperforming others.

Coaches shaping team mindset

33%OF USERS

Coaches use it to understand what drives each athlete and to tailor feedback, goals, and training focus after wins and losses.

Sport psychologists and counselors

23%OF USERS

Practitioners administer it to quickly assess an athlete’s success orientation and guide motivation and resilience work.

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.

Start Online Test

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.

Task Orientation (TO)

Average

12.5

Normal range

9.1 — 15.9

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.

Focus on Yourself (FoY)

Average

22.4

Normal range

18 — 26.7

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.

Start Online Test

Featured On

Rated 4.8/5 by Our Customers

“Freudly really helped me discover parts of my personality I hadn’t noticed before. It strengthened the areas where I needed to grow and made me feel more grounded and confident in the parts that already worked well.”

— Emma C., US

“I wanted to understand how serious my ADHD is, and now I finally do. I also realized I need to work on my self-esteem. It has been low for a long time, and that makes daily life harder than it should be.”

— Mateo R., CA

“Reading each question felt like someone really understood me. Even though I’ve already dealt with much of this, reflecting still helped me learn something new about myself.”

— Caroline F., US

“The process is simple. The test covers everything you need, and you’ll get a clear breakdown of your results. For just a few dollars, it’s a great value.”

— Klara N., CZ

“I kept thinking there might be a small chance, but now I know for sure. The questions were easy to understand, and the whole process was straightforward.”

— Bruno M., BR

“I really enjoyed this experience. I learned a lot, and it helped me make sense of my thoughts and the feeling I’ve had for a long time that I may have grown up with undiagnosed ADHD.”

— Alice B., FR

“Great platform — the insights were genuinely meaningful!”

— Daniel W., DE

“Everything was easy to follow. The tools you get at the end are genuinely helpful for self-growth, and the price is very reasonable. I really appreciate that.”

— Sofia M., ES

“Surprisingly accurate — honestly didn’t expect it to nail things so well.”

— Adir B., IL

“There are lots of different tests to pick from, and the price is surprisingly low for how much insight you get.”

— Olivia W., CA

“I was pleasantly surprised when I read the results. It was as if someone had sorted out my messy thoughts and given me useful tips to help me speak with more confidence.”

— Grace O., IE

“It was really solid, very detailed, and it actually helped me make sense of a lot of things.”

— Carla T., TT

“I was really impressed with the report. It was clear, thoughtful, and it reflected things I’ve been noticing about myself.”

— Jade H., US

“The questions made me think deeply and helped me become more self-aware.”

— Brooke S., US

“Reading through most of the questions made me feel understood. Although I’ve already worked through some of these issues, the questions still gave me useful insights and helped me learn more about myself.”

— Ryan M., US

“I usually take one or two tests each month, and this has become a good way for me to see how I’m doing.”

— Lucas W., US

“Most of the time, my results are in the 90 to 98th percentile compared to others. It really makes me feel like there’s something unique about me.”

— Ethan C., US

“I tried out some of the AI’s suggestions, and to be honest, they worked much better than I thought they would. Maybe this thing really is smarter than me.”

— Reece D., AU

Trusted by 22k+ Users Worldwide

CLEAR ANSWERS TO COMMON QUESTIONS

Frequently Asked Questions

Any questions left?

What does this questionnaire measure?

It measures how success is defined in sport settings. It distinguishes between a process focus (improvement and mastery) and an outcome focus (winning and outperforming others).

How long does it take to complete?

Most respondents finish in about 3 minutes. The questionnaire includes 12 items.

How should items be answered?

Select the response that best matches what success usually means, not what is preferred in an ideal situation. Answer each item based on typical thoughts and feelings in sport.

Is there a right or wrong score?

There are no correct or incorrect answers. Scores reflect relative emphasis on process-based versus outcome-based definitions of success.

How are results typically used?

Results can guide goal-setting, feedback style, and motivational planning in training and competition. They can also support discussions about reactions to wins and losses.

WHAT THE TEST MEASURES

About This Assessment

Perception of Success Questionnaire (POSQ) Test

sport

This measure assesses how individuals define and evaluate success in sport and achievement contexts. The Perception of Success Questionnaire (POSQ) is designed to differentiate achievement goal orientations reflected in respondents’ self-reported criteria for feeling successful. It was developed by John G. Nicholls and Joan L. Duda.

The instrument includes 12 items and typically takes about 3 minutes to complete. Responses are commonly used to characterize the relative emphasis on personal improvement and effort (task orientation) versus normative comparison and winning (ego orientation).

Results from the Perception of Success Questionnaire (POSQ) may inform clinical or sport psychology case formulation, coaching consultation, and motivational interventions by clarifying the standards an athlete uses to judge performance and outcomes. Interpretation should be integrated with contextual information (e.g., competitive level, training environment) and other relevant assessment data.

Author: Joan L. Duda, John G. Nicholls

Literature: Roberts, G. C., Treasure, D. C., & Balagué, G. Achievement goals in sport: The development and validation of the Perception of Success Questionnaire. Journal of Sports Sciences. 1998.

Test Question Form