Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11)
See what each facet means, how it is scored, and how your result is read against the population that actually fits you.
The Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11) is the most widely used self-report measure of trait impulsiveness. It treats impulsiveness as the everyday tendency to act, speak or decide quickly rather than reflecting first, and it splits that tendency into three distinct facets so a result is read as a profile, not a single number.
The model
What it measures
Select a facet to see what it captures. Each is the sum of several short statements rated on a 4-point frequency scale, and the three facets combine into an overall total.
Impulsiveness here is the trait counterpart to self-control. The three facets describe different ways it shows up: jumping between thoughts and acting on the spur of the moment (attentional), acting without thinking and a restless drive (motor), and a present focus that skips careful planning (non-planning). Higher means more impulsive on that facet.
Acting on the spur of the moment and finding it hard to keep attention on one thing.
- ATAttentional Impulsiveness
Acting on the spur of the moment and finding it hard to keep attention on one thing.
Facets: Quick decisions, Racing thoughts, Difficulty concentrating.
- MOMotor Impulsiveness
Acting without thinking, restlessness and a drive to keep moving.
Facets: Acting on impulse, Restlessness, Doing things on the spur of the moment.
- NPNon-planning Impulsiveness
A focus on the present and little forward planning or care for the future.
Facets: Present focus, Little forethought, Dislike of careful planning.
The evidence
Science and validity
The BIS-11 total shows solid internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha around .82-.83) and good one-month test-retest stability across large samples; the three second-order facets are well established, though the Motor facet alpha is more modest and the facet structure is not always replicated cross-culturally, so many users report the total alongside the profile. The scale correlates with other impulsivity questionnaires and is higher, on average, in groups where impulsiveness is prominent.
You rate each of 30 statements on a 4-point frequency scale (rarely/never to almost always). Some statements are reverse-keyed so that, after recoding, a higher value always means more impulsive, and the items are summed to a 30-120 total and into the three facet scores. There are no official diagnostic cut-offs; the result is norm-referenced against a comparison group.
Where you stand
How a score becomes a percentile
A raw score only means something against a comparison group. For example, an Attentional Impulsiveness score of 19 sits a little above the average for US adult data (where the mean is near 17), placing it around the 70th percentile - more attentional impulsiveness than roughly seven in ten adults. Drag the slider to see how a score on each facet maps to a percentile; your real result is matched to the population that fits you when you take the test.
Your result, visualised across every dimension
Take the test once and see a full profile like this example, each dimension placed against the population most relevant to you, with plain-language interpretation.
See my full profile →Example profile shown for illustration.
The reference data
Benchmarked against the population that fits you
We benchmark your result against the population that actually resembles you, across 20 reference groups.
Each reference group is used as its own benchmark, not to rank one country against another.
How it works
What the questions feel like
Illustrative statements showing the style of the items. These are examples, not the official scored items.
My thoughts often jump from one thing to another.
Illustrative example in the style of the scale, not an official scored item.
I act on the spur of the moment without thinking it through.
Illustrative example, not an official scored item.
I plan tasks carefully before I start them.
Illustrative reverse-worded example, not an official scored item.
I am more interested in the present than in planning for the future.
Illustrative example, not an official scored item.
Honest strengths and limitations
Strengths
- The most widely used self-report measure of trait impulsiveness, with strong reliability and decades of research behind it.
- Gives a three-facet profile - attentional, motor and non-planning - rather than a single undifferentiated score.
- Short (about 6 minutes) and open for research and educational use with attribution.
Limitations
- It is a profile, not a single verdict: a high Non-planning score is different from a high Attentional or Motor score, and reading the three facets together is what makes it meaningful.
- The Motor facet is the least internally consistent of the three, and the facet structure is not always reproduced across languages, so the total is often the more dependable figure.
- Like all self-reports it can be shaped by mood and self-presentation, and it captures the felt trait rather than behaviour in a specific moment; cross-country mean comparisons are confounded by measurement differences.
See your full profile
A complete report, matched to the population that fits you, with plain-language interpretation of every trait.
Frequently asked questions
What does the impulsivity test measure?
The BIS-11 measures trait impulsiveness across three facets - Attentional, Motor and Non-planning - which together describe the tendency to act, speak or decide quickly rather than reflecting first. It is read as a profile, not a single number.
Is impulsivity the opposite of self-control?
Closely related. Impulsiveness as measured here is the trait counterpart to self-control: higher impulsiveness tends to go with lower self-control. The two are usually studied as opposite poles of the same broad tendency.
How is the BIS-11 scored?
Each of 30 statements is rated on a 4-point frequency scale. Some are reverse-keyed so higher always means more impulsive, and the items are summed to a 30-120 total and into three facet scores. There are no official diagnostic cut-offs; the score is read against a comparison group.
How long does it take?
About six minutes - 30 statements on a 4-point scale.
Related tests
- Patton, J. H., Stanford, M. S., & Barratt, E. S. (1995). Factor structure of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 51(6), 768-774.
- Stanford, M. S., Mathias, C. W., Dougherty, D. M., Lake, S. L., Anderson, N. E., & Patton, J. H. (2009). Fifty years of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale: An update and review. Personality and Individual Differences, 47(5), 385-395.
The Barratt Impulsiveness Scale is the work of Ernest Barratt and colleagues (BIS-11: Patton, Stanford & Barratt, 1995); this independent informational page describes the instrument.