20-item measure of student attitudes toward research and research self-efficacy. ≈ 5 min to complete. Free with attribution.
SRBA (Student Research Beliefs and Attitudes) is a validated clinical instrument used to assess 20-item measure of student attitudes toward research and research self-efficacy.. It is most often used for 20-item measure of student attitudes toward research and research self-efficacy.. The instrument contains 20 items. Typical administration time is ≈ 5 min.
Source / attribution: Free to use with citation
20-item measure of student attitudes toward research and research self-efficacy. SRBA is part of standard practice in this setting because it provides a structured, replicable assessment that can be tracked over time and compared across patients or visits.
Like all screening or assessment instruments, SRBA is a structured aid — not a diagnostic test in isolation. Results should be interpreted alongside history, examination, and clinical context. Where a score crosses an actionable threshold, the next step is typically a more detailed clinical evaluation rather than a definitive diagnosis.
Answer all 20 items below to see your SRBA score and interpretation.
Each item is scored on a 5-point scale (1–5). Your score updates live as you answer.
All scoring runs in your browser. No data is sent anywhere — close the tab and the answers are gone.
Sum all 20 items scored 1-5. Total range 20-100. Higher scores = more positive research attitudes.
Scoring notes: Sum all 20 items scored 1-5. Total range 20-100. Higher scores = more positive research attitudes.
The cutoffs below are drawn from the published validation literature. Always interpret in clinical context.
| Score range | Band | Interpretation |
|---|---|---|
| 20–50 | Negative attitudes | Research skills training |
| 51–75 | Neutral attitudes | Supportive training |
| 76–100 | Positive attitudes | Advanced opportunities |
This is an illustrative walkthrough, not a real patient. Follow the same four steps with your own answers — or use the live calculator at the top of this page.
Read each question and choose the response that best fits. Each response has a number next to it — that number is the item's score. The example below uses illustrative answers.
| # | Item | Example response | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | I feel mentally exhausted from my studies | Neutral | 3 |
| 2 | I find it difficult to relax after studying | Neutral | 3 |
| 3 | Studying drains my energy | Neutral | 3 |
| 4 | I feel emotionally worn out by my coursework | Neutral | 3 |
| 5 | Even on study breaks, I feel tired | Neutral | 3 |
| 6 | I have lost enthusiasm for my studies | Neutral | 3 |
| 7 | I feel less engaged with my course material than before | Neutral | 3 |
| 8 | I have become more cynical about whether studying contributes to anything | Neutral | 3 |
| 9 | I have lost interest in topics that used to motivate me | Neutral | 3 |
| 10 | I doubt the meaning of my academic work | Neutral | 3 |
| 11 | I have trouble concentrating during study sessions | Neutral | 3 |
| 12 | I forget things I learned recently | Neutral | 3 |
| 13 | Following lectures or readings takes more effort than it used to | Neutral | 3 |
| 14 | I feel slower at academic tasks I used to do quickly | Neutral | 3 |
| 15 | I have difficulty thinking clearly while studying | Neutral | 3 |
| 16 | I am irritable with classmates or instructors | Agree | 4 |
| 17 | I have less patience with study group members | Neutral | 3 |
| 18 | Small academic setbacks upset me more than they should | Agree | 4 |
| 19 | I feel that studying is becoming a burden | Neutral | 3 |
| 20 | I feel that I am no longer growing through my studies | Agree | 4 |
Add up all the item scores you noted in Step 1.
3 + 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 + … (items 9–20 sum to 39) = 63
Find the row in the interpretation table whose range contains your total:
Total = 63 falls between 51 and 75 → Neutral attitudes
Neutral attitudes. Supportive training
A score is one input alongside history and examination. SRBA supports clinical judgment — it does not replace it.
Psychometric figures are drawn from the validation literature and may vary across clinical populations and translations.
If SRBA doesn't fit your context, related instruments in academic include:
| Scale | Measures | Items | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| SUS | 30-item measure of stressful life events specific to college and university students. | 10 | ≈ 5 min |
| PHQ-9 | Severity of depression | 9 | ≈ 3 minutes |
| GAD-7 | Severity of generalized anxiety | 7 | ≈ 2 minutes |
| AUDIT | 10-item WHO screening tool for hazardous alcohol consumption and dependence. | 10 | ≈ 3 min |
| CHA2DS2-VASc | Annual stroke risk in non-valvular atrial fibrillation | 8 | — |
| Glasgow Coma Scale | Level of consciousness after head injury | 3 | — |
| MELD-Na | 3-month mortality in advanced liver disease; transplant prioritization | 5 | — |
SRBA (Student Research Beliefs and Attitudes) is a validated instrument that assesses student attitudes toward research and research self-efficacy. It is designed for clinicians, medical students, evidence-synthesis researchers. It takes about 5 min to complete, and the 20 items are summed to produce a total score.
SRBA typically takes about 5 min to administer. The exact duration varies a little depending on whether it is self-administered or completed with a clinician. Its brief format is part of what makes it practical for routine clinical use and for repeat administration when tracking change over time.
SRBA contains 20 items. Item scores are summed to produce the total. Scores run from 20 to 100, grouped into 3 interpretation bands from ‘Negative attitudes’ up to ‘Positive attitudes’.
On the SRBA (total score 20–100), scores of 76–100 fall in the ‘Positive attitudes’ band — interpreted as: Advanced opportunities. The full ladder is: 20–50 — Negative attitudes: Research skills training.; 51–75 — Neutral attitudes: Supportive training.; 76–100 — Positive attitudes: Advanced opportunities. A higher score reflects a more severe presentation, and crossing a cutoff is a prompt to step up assessment or care — but these bands are screening thresholds, not diagnoses.
Scores of 20–50 fall in the ‘Negative attitudes’ band: Research skills training. A low score is reassuring but does not by itself rule out the underlying condition — if symptoms or clinical suspicion persist, reassess over time or use a complementary evaluation rather than relying on the number alone.
SRBA has reported Cronbach's α of 0.82 in validation samples and test–retest reliability of 0.75. Used in health sciences education research. In practical terms, a Cronbach’s α around 0.82 indicates good internal consistency (the items hang together well), and a test–retest reliability of 0.75 means scores are well when the scale is repeated without real clinical change.
SRBA is free to use with attribution — clinical, educational, and research use is permitted provided the original source is credited. If you publish results or reproduce the scale, include the citation to the source paper.
Forester, M., Kahn, J. H., & Hesson-McInnis, M. S. (2004). Factor structures of three measures of research self-efficacy. Journal of Career Assessment, 12(1), 3-16. This is the original publication for the SRBA — the reference to cite when reporting results.
No. SRBA is a structured assessment aid, not a diagnostic test. Its proper role is clinical assessment of student attitudes toward research and research self-efficacy — it standardizes assessment and flags who needs closer evaluation, but the result must be weighed alongside history, examination, and clinical context. When a score conflicts with your clinical impression, clinical judgment takes precedence; treatment decisions should never rest on a screening score alone.
SRBA is supported by the following peer-reviewed sources: