Emotional dependency: 11 questionnaires and rating scales

The MAQ is a self-report questionnaire designed to measure attachment styles and attachment quality in individuals, according to the main styles described in adult attachment theories. It targets several dimensions, including secure, preoccupied, avoidant, and fearful attachment. It is frequently used in both research and clinical practice to assess the nature of an adult's attachment relationships.

The ASA-27 is a tool for assessing separation anxiety symptoms in adults, which are often related to excessive attachment or an irrational fear of separation from significant others.

The Adult Attachment Interview (AAI) is a semi-structured interview used to assess adults' attachment representations of their childhood attachment experiences. It relies on a series of questions about childhood memories and about the way these experiences influence current relationships. The AAI requires administration by a trained interviewer and a qualitative analysis, coded according to a standardized grid. It is mainly used in research, and sometimes in clinical practice, to assess the attachment patterns transmitted to the next generation.

The SASI is a self-report questionnaire used mainly with adults to retrospectively estimate the intensity of separation anxiety symptoms present during childhood and adolescence. In particular, it explores distress during separations, fear that harm will befall attachment figures, an excessive need for proximity, avoidance of separation, and certain associated somatic signs. In clinical practice, it helps with screening and with the dimensional characterization of a history of separation anxiety, particularly in the assessment of anxiety disorders and adult separation anxiety.

The SCI-SAS is a structured clinical interview designed to assess separation anxiety symptoms, mainly in adults, with a retrospective exploration of manifestations during childhood and of symptoms in adulthood. It helps the psychologist or psychiatrist objectively document the presence, intensity and impact of symptoms related to separation from an attachment figure. This tool is particularly useful for identifying adult separation anxiety disorder, for differential diagnosis with anxiety disorders and for in-depth clinical assessment in specialized consultations.

The LAI is a brief self-report questionnaire designed to identify addictive manifestations in romantic relationships. It typically explores core dimensions of addiction as applied to the romantic bond, such as pervasive preoccupation with the partner, loss of control, distress in the event of separation or unavailability, continuing the relationship despite its negative consequences, and difficulty reducing these behaviors or thoughts. In clinical practice, it can help screen for addictive emotional dependence and guide further assessment of relational functioning, attachment, impulsivity, self-esteem, and possible dynamics of psychological abuse. It is a screening tool, not a diagnosis on its own.

The Emotional Dependency Questionnaire (also known as the affective dependency questionnaire) is designed to assess the level of emotional dependency in romantic relationships. It includes 23 items divided into 6 clinical dimensions, such as separation anxiety, fear of loneliness, and attention seeking. This instrument is used to identify people who display excessive or dysfunctional affective behaviors in the context of relationships.

The RSQ is a self-report questionnaire assessing sensitivity to interpersonal rejection. It presents 18 hypothetical situations involving significant or relationally relevant people (for example friends, parents, a teacher, a romantic partner, an acquaintance) and jointly measures anxiety about possible rejection and the expectation of acceptance. Initially developed with students and young adults, it helps the psychologist identify a relational vulnerability marked by the anxious anticipation of rejection, which is useful in exploring attachment difficulties, relationship conflicts and certain mixed anxiety-depressive complaints.

The ASQ-SF is a self-report tool that measures adult attachment styles, particularly the avoidant and anxious dimensions. It relies on 5 subscales to explore relational dynamics in finer detail, such as need for approval or discomfort with intimacy. Its dimensional structure and clinical norms make it a useful instrument for enriching case formulation and guiding therapeutic interventions focused on interpersonal relationships.

The CODAT is a self-report questionnaire designed to measure codependency traits in adults within close relationships. It explores, in particular, the tendency to focus excessively on the needs of others, self-sacrifice, relational control, and difficulty recognizing or expressing one's own feelings. Used mainly in research and as a complement to clinical assessment, it can help the psychologist identify dysfunctional relational patterns, objectify certain interpersonal difficulties, and track progress over the course of treatment. The CODAT is not a stand-alone diagnostic tool and must be interpreted together with the clinical interview, relational history, and psychosocial context.

The PAAI is a semi-structured interview designed to explore an adult's representation of attachment to their own parents during childhood, as well as its influence on current parenting. It is a qualitative tool, mainly used in research and sometimes in clinical practice for profiling parental attachment.