Mental Health Self-Assessment: Insights for Emotional Wellness
Gain Insights Into Your Emotional Well-Being Through Mental Health Self-Assessment
As humans, many of us strive to find emotional balance and well-being in our lives. We often search for ways to understand what brings us joy and fulfillment—yet we can still struggle to comprehend the complexities of our feelings.
Self-assessment tools can be valuable resources, potentially providing you with useful insights into your current emotional state and which areas of your life contribute to your mental well-being.
While some self-assessment tools lack scientific validation, many have been adapted from widely accepted self-report scales and reviewed by mental health professionals. In this article, we’re exploring emotional well-being, common ways it is measured, and how you can find assessments that will help you evaluate your mental health.
Emotional Well-Being – definition and sources
Learning more about the concept of emotional well-being, and the elements that may influence it, can help us better understand how certain self-assessment tools are developed. There are many different interpretations of emotional wellness, ranging from a global definition focusing on positive emotions and life satisfaction to more nuanced interpretations based on one’s purpose or values.
Subjective well-being is often used to measure emotional health through factors like relationships, physical health, and joy. It comprises two elements: experienced well-being (e.g., happiness and joy) and evaluative well-being (e.g., employment status, social support). Evaluative well-being can help us assess our overall level of contentment, whereas experienced well-being can give us feelings of pleasure.
Engagement and meaning have also been found to be core elements of emotional wellness. Engagement refers to feeling a sense of purpose in life, while meaning connects us to something larger than ourselves. These two factors can help us feel motivated, hopeful, and fulfilled.
When developing an understanding of emotional well-being, it can also help to consider its sources. The biology of happiness examines how hormones, neurotransmitters, and environment can impact our emotions. Hormones like serotonin, dopamine, and oxytocin can affect how we feel. Serotonin can help us feel relaxed and content, dopamine can make us feel excited and motivated, and oxytocin can help us bond with others and feel loved and accepted. When there is an imbalance in these hormones, it can lead to mood swings and negative emotions. Neurotransmitters like endorphins and GABA also influence our emotional state. Endorphins are the “feel-good” chemicals that make us feel energized and happy, while GABA helps us manage anxiety and stress.
Recent research suggests that some people may be more predisposed to certain emotional states than others due to their genetic makeup, with one study finding that subjective well-being has a heritability of 80%. However, your environment can also significantly affect your overall mental health. Stress, social support, physical activity, and other environmental factors can all impact our well-being.
While some elements of emotional well-being are out of our control, we can take proactive steps to reduce stress, build social support, and lead healthier lives. As we’ll discuss below, reflecting on what brings us joy and fulfillment through self-assessment measures may help us prioritize activities that support our mental health.
Quantifying emotional well-being
Now that you know how emotional well-being can be defined, you may wonder how to measure it. Self-report measures are among the most common methods of evaluating one’s mental health. These measures include surveys and questionnaires, which can help people assess their subjective well-being. While there are no clinical tests that definitively measure emotional wellness, self-report scales can indicate how content and satisfied you feel. They can help identify areas that need your attention so you can take informed steps toward improving your mental health and well-being.
Mental health self-assessments may include questions about your financial situation, life satisfaction, relationships, work-life balance, physical health, and other areas affecting your overall well-being. The advantage of self-report measures is that they are often easy to administer and inexpensive. They can also be taken periodically to measure levels of certain elements of emotional wellness over time. However, they are often subjective and don’t always capture the full context of a person’s life.
One common assessment used to measure emotional well-being is the Subjective Happiness Scale, which is a 4-item self-report questionnaire. The four questions relate to an individual’s personal happiness as well as their happiness related to their peers. You can print out and complete this test and then ask a mental health professional, such as a licensed clinical social worker, to help you interpret your results.
There are also versions of emotional wellness tests that are adapted from the optimism-pessimism scale. In these tests, answers to different scenarios and self-assessment questions measure where a person falls on the optimism-pessimism continuum.
Alternative methods for measuring emotional well-being include using information from biometric readings or behavioral observations. Biometric data—taken from physiological measurements of heart rate, skin temperature, brain activity, and other data points—can provide insights into a person’s emotional state. Research shows, for example, that pulse rate can be a useful indicator of well-being. Behavioral observations, on the other hand, involve looking at how people behave in different situations and can provide a more accurate picture of their moods.
It is important to remember that measuring emotional well-being can be complex and is, essentially, subjective. However, exploring methods like self-report measures, biometrics, and behavioral observations can help us better understand our mental health and what contributes to our emotional balance.
Using self-assessment results for personal growth
Once you’ve taken a mental health self-assessment and received your results, you may be able to identify areas in which you can make changes and improve your overall well-being. You can start by outlining your goals, then setting milestones that can help you achieve them. When you identify areas where you can make improvements and set achievable goals, you may be more motivated to stay on track. For example, if your test results indicate a lack of social connection, you can set a goal to reconnect with one old friend a week.
Sometimes, the best thing you can do to promote emotional wellness is to be kind to yourself. Caring for your mental and physical health can make the changes you’re striving for easier to achieve. Self-care goes beyond the physical and can include engaging in creative activities, practicing relaxation techniques, or simply taking time for yourself to be alone.
Self-care has been shown to increase resilience, reduce stress, and improve overall well-being. Taking the time to nurture your physical and mental health can help you maintain a positive outlook and reach your goals faster, potentially facilitating increased emotional wellness.
Why emotional well-being matters
Emotional well-being is more than just a feeling — it can affect all aspects of your life. Studies have shown that people with better mental health live longer and healthier lives, are more productive at work, perform better academically, and have stronger relationships with family and friends.
Additionally, good emotional health has been linked to increased self-esteem, improved decision-making skills, and a lower risk of depression and anxiety. When you are emotionally balanced and content, making positive changes in your life and creating meaningful experiences can also be easier.
Self-assessment tools are just one way of measuring your overall well-being. While they can be useful for understanding your current state and starting the self-improvement process, they are not a substitute for professional guidance.
They are best used as a starting point for self-exploration and reflection rather than a definitive diagnosis. If your self-assessment results highlight significant concerns or persistent distress, it is important to seek the support of a qualified mental health professional who can provide a comprehensive evaluation and personalized guidance.
Ultimately, understanding and nurturing your emotional well-being is a lifelong process. By regularly engaging with self-assessment tools, practicing self-care, and remaining open to growth, you can cultivate resilience and foster a deeper connection with yourself and others. Remember, prioritizing your mental health is not only beneficial for your own quality of life but also enriches your relationships and contributions to the community.
Taking the time to assess and improve your emotional well-being is a powerful step toward leading a balanced and fulfilling life. Embrace this journey with patience and kindness, knowing that every small effort contributes to your overall mental health and happiness.
