Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale
WEMWBSA 14-item scale measuring mental well-being (hedonic and eudaimonic) over the past two weeks, covering positive affect, psychological functioning, and interpersonal relationships.
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Reliability & validation
Known limitations
Free to use but requires registration/permission from the University of Warwick. Prone to ceiling effects in general-population samples; a 7-item short form (SWEMWBS) offers interval-level scoring.
Original citation
Tennant, R., Hiller, L., Fishwick, R., Platt, S., Joseph, S., Weich, S., Parkinson, J., Secker, J., Stewart-Brown, S. (2007). The Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale (WEMWBS): Development and UK validation. Health and Quality of Life Outcomes, 5(1), 63.
https://doi.org/10.1186/1477-7525-5-63This instrument is licensed. Folio does not distribute its item wording — obtain permission from the copyright holder before using it in your study.
Questions researchers ask
What does the WEMWBS measure?
A 14-item scale measuring mental well-being (hedonic and eudaimonic) over the past two weeks, covering positive affect, psychological functioning, and interpersonal relationships.
How many items does the WEMWBS have?
The Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale (WEMWBS) has 14 items.
Is the WEMWBS free to use?
The WEMWBS is licensed. You must obtain permission from the copyright holder before using it in a study — Folio does not distribute its item wording without that permission.
Is the WEMWBS reliable?
Validation studies report Cronbach's α of 0.89, test–retest reliability of 0.83. See the reliability section for the population studied and full statistics.
Who developed the WEMWBS, and how do I cite it?
Tennant, R., Hiller, L., Fishwick, R., Platt, S., Joseph, S., Weich, S., Parkinson, J., Secker, J., Stewart-Brown, S. (2007). The Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale (WEMWBS): Development and UK validation. Health and Quality of Life Outcomes, 5(1), 63. https://doi.org/10.1186/1477-7525-5-63
Permission required
Importing WEMWBSinto a Surveyor study is disabled: Folio holds the instrument’s metadata, not a license to pass on its wording. The citation, scoring and reliability details on this page are free to use and cite.
Related scales
Library entry verified July 2026. Metadata is provided for reference; item wording is available inside Folio Surveyor, subject to each instrument's licensing.