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Thought Control Questionnaire (TCQ)3

Thought Control Questionnaire (TCQ) Test

Understand how you cope with intrusive thoughts in about 6 minutes. Get clear insight into your go to strategies so you can target what helps and adjust what holds you back.

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Questions: 306 minutes

08:30

September 1, 2026

September 1, 2026
Material has been updated

October 2, 2025
Material has been published

22,415 views

2,096 completions

1,683 likes

Verified by Daniel Hall

Psychologist with 25 years of experience

Scale Explorer

How the Scales are Structured

example score

17/24

Reappraisal (R)

Measures how often a person tries to manage intrusive thoughts by rethinking them and changing their attitude toward them.

Low use

Moderate use

High use

6 – 11: Low use | 12 – 16: Moderate use | 17 – 24: High use

A score of 17 indicates a high tendency to use reappraisal as a strategy for controlling intrusive thoughts.

example score

15/24

Punishment (P)

Measures how much a person responds to intrusive thoughts with self-criticism or self-punishing reactions.

Low

High

6 – 12: Low | 13 – 24: High

A score of 15 falls in the High range, suggesting self-criticism or self-punishment is used fairly often when dealing with unwanted thoughts.

example score

12/24

Worry (W)

Assesses how strongly a person tends to escalate anxiety and worry when intrusive thoughts arise.

Low

Moderate

High

6 – 7: Low | 8 – 12: Moderate | 13 – 24: High

A score of 12 falls in the Moderate range, suggesting a moderate tendency to amplify anxiety and worry in response to intrusive thoughts.

example score

22/24

Social Control (SC)

Measures how much a person uses social interaction and reaching out to others to manage intrusive or unwanted thoughts.

Low use

Moderate use

High use

6 – 11: Low use | 12 – 17: Moderate use | 18 – 24: High use

A score of 22 indicates a high tendency to cope with intrusive thoughts by talking to others or seeking social support.

example score

17/24

Distraction (D)

Measures how often a person diverts attention (e.g., switching activities or focusing elsewhere) to manage intrusive thoughts.

Lower use

Moderate use

Higher use

6 – 11: Lower use | 12 – 17: Moderate use | 18 – 24: Higher use

A score of 17 suggests a moderate tendency to use distraction strategies to reduce the impact of unwanted thoughts.

example score

60/120

Total Score (TS)

Reflects the overall intensity of using a range of strategies to control intrusive or unpleasant thoughts.

Low use

Moderate use

High use

30 – 42: Low use | 43 – 54: Moderate use | 55 – 120: High use

A score of 60 falls in the High use range, suggesting frequent reliance on multiple thought-control strategies in response to unwanted thoughts.

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DATA-BASED USER COHORTS

Who Usually Takes This Test?

Anxiety and worry sufferers

41%OF USERS

People dealing with intrusive thoughts, rumination, or anxiety take it to see which coping strategies they rely on and which may be backfiring.

Therapy and self-help seekers

34%OF USERS

People in counseling or working on self-improvement use it to identify their go-to ways of managing unwanted thoughts and plan healthier alternatives.

Psychologists and researchers

25%OF USERS

Mental health professionals and students take it to assess clients or collect data on thought-control strategies in clinical and research settings.

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.

Overestimation (O)

Average

15.5

Normal range

12.9 — 18.2

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.

Punishment (P)

Average

12.1

Normal range

9.1 — 15.1

min.

max.

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Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Anxiety (A)

Average

15.7

Normal range

12.4 — 19.1

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.

Social Control (SC)

Average

18.2

Normal range

15.5 — 20.9

min.

max.

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Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Distraction (D)

Average

13.8

Normal range

11.3 — 16.3

min.

max.

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Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Overall result (Or)

Average

65.9

Normal range

52.4 — 79.5

min.

max.

120

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

Most people experience unpleasant and/or unwanted thoughts (in verbal or imagery form) that can be difficult to control. This questionnaire is concerned with the strategies you typically use to control such thoughts. Below are several examples of how people manage thoughts of this kind. Please read each statement carefully and indicate how often you use each strategy. Select the response option that best applies to each statement. There are no right or wrong answers. Do not spend too much time thinking about your responses.

- Never
- Sometimes
- Often
- Almost always
- Never
- Sometimes
- Often
- Almost always
- Never
- Sometimes
- Often
- Almost always

These are 3 of the 30 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

Thought Control Questionnaire (TCQ) Test - Symptoms and Signs

cbt

The measure is designed to characterize how individuals respond to intrusive or unwanted thoughts; the Thought Control Questionnaire (TCQ) provides a brief self-report profile of commonly used cognitive control strategies. It is intended to support clinical formulation and research by describing patterns of coping efforts rather than establishing a diagnosis.

The questionnaire includes 30 items and typically takes about 6 minutes to complete. Respondents rate the extent to which they use different approaches (e.g., distraction, suppression, replacement with alternative thoughts, and avoidance), which can help identify strategies that may be associated with distress or reduced functioning.

Literature: Reynolds, M., & Wells, A. The Thought Control Questionnaire: Psychometric properties in a clinical sample, and relationships with PTSD and depression. Psychological Medicine. 2000.