A new mental health tool to track emotional well-being

A simple, short questionnaire designed by an Edith Cowan University (ECU) researcher could help people better understand and track their emotional well-being with minimal time and effort.

The Brief Emotional Experience Scale (BEES) was developed and tested by ECU Psychology Researcher and Senior Lecturer Dr. Shane Rogers. Developed to be accessible, intuitive, and easy to use, BEES pairs positive and negative emotion adjectives like happy–sad or calm–worried to provide a balanced assessment of emotional health.

BEES has now been validated in a large-scale study published in Behavioral Sciences involving more than 7,000 participants, including university students, school students and members of the public in Australia and the U.K.

Quick, clear and effective

Dr. Rogers said the BEES was created to offer a reliable emotional well-being measure that could be completed in just a few moments.

“Many existing mental health questionnaires are long, complex or use technical language,” he said.

“We wanted to develop something that was clear, quick to complete, and appropriate for a wide range of people, regardless of age, background, or literacy level.”

Unlike other tools that focus solely on high-intensity emotions like excitement or anxiety, the BEES covers a broader range of everyday emotional experiences, using balanced pairs of positive and negative feelings.

Low stress, high accuracy

The study found that the BEES results matched closely with established psychological tools like the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21) and the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10). It also caused less discomfort for participants, which Dr. Rogers explained was a key factor in encouraging honest and ongoing self-reflection.

“Participants reported feeling more comfortable using the BEES compared to other mental health questionnaires,” he said.

“That’s important, especially if we want people to regularly check in with themselves or use the tool in settings like schools, workplaces, or health care.”

Spotting signs of distress

The research also helped establish new scoring bands to identify people experiencing higher levels of emotional distress; about 20% of females and 10% of males in the study fell into this category.

“These insights can help identify people who may benefit from extra support, without needing a long or invasive survey,” Dr. Rogers said.

“It’s about giving people a tool that’s both scientifically sound and easy to use in everyday life.”

Free and ready to use

The BEES is freely available to researchers, educators, health professionals, community organizations, and the public and does not require special permission to use.

“We’re hoping to see the BEES used more widely, whether it’s by schools wanting to monitor student well-being, researchers looking for a flexible measurement tool, or anyone interested in keeping track of how they’re feeling,” Dr. Rogers said.

He added that future research would focus on testing the BEES in different cultural contexts and over longer periods of time, including its ability to track emotional changes after interventions or during life transitions.