Attitudes Toward Self – ATS
Measures three self-regulatory cognitive vulnerabilities to depression: holding overly high standards, self-criticism, and generalization from failure.
Scale Development & Technical Details
Scale Overview
The Attitudes Toward Self – ATS was developed by Charles S. Carver (1988). It is designed to measure Cognitive vulnerabilities to depression. The scale is intended for use with Adults.
Scale Structure
This instrument consists of 10 items organized into 3 factors/subscales: High Standards, Self-Criticism, Generalization.
| Factor / Subscale | Items | N |
|---|---|---|
| High Standards | 1,4,7 | 3 |
| Self-Criticism | 3,6,9 | 3 |
| Generalization | 2,5,8,10 | 4 |
Response Format
Respondents rate each item using a custom response format.
Response anchors: 1 = I agree a lot, 2 = I agree a little, 3 = I'm in the middle–I neither agree nor disagree, 4 = I Disagree a little, 5 = I Disagree a lot.
The scale includes 9 reverse-scored items to reduce acquiescence bias.
Scoring
Items are scored by subscale, with each subscale sum representing a distinct dimension.
Psychometric Properties
Internal Consistency: The scale has demonstrated good to excellent internal consistency with reported Cronbach’s alpha values of Alpha: High Standards = .76, Self-Criticism = .78, Generalization = .78.
Administration
The scale is self-administered and typically takes approximately 3 minutes to complete. It can be administered individually or in group settings. No special training is required for administration.