Are you a highly sensitive person? This scale measures sensory-processing sensitivity. 27 items, about 8 minutes.

What Is the Highly Sensitive Person Scale (HSPS)?

Roughly 15-20% of people react more strongly than others to noise, bright lights, other people's moods, and subtle environmental details. If that sounds like you, you might be measuring high on sensory-processing sensitivity (SPS).

Aron and Aron (1997) created the HSPS to capture this trait. It covers three facets:

  • Ease of Excitation (EOE) — how easily you feel overwhelmed by external demands
  • Aesthetic Sensitivity (AES) — how deeply you appreciate art, music, nature, and fine details
  • Low Sensory Threshold (LST) — how strongly you react to unpleasant sensory input (loud noises, chaotic environments, scratchy fabrics)

Scoring

27 items on a 7-point scale. Add up your total — higher scores mean higher sensitivity. A common cutoff is 14 or above on the 12-item short version, but the full 27-item version gives a more complete picture.

Reliability & Validity

  • Internal consistency: alpha = .87-.89
  • Test-retest: .81 at 2 months
  • The three-factor structure has been replicated across cultures including Japan, Spain, and the Netherlands
> This measures a normal personality trait, not a disorder. High sensitivity has advantages — you notice things others miss.

Scoring Guide

Sum scoring. 1-7 per item; 27-189 total. Higher=higher sensory-processing sensitivity. No reverse items. Three subscales: EOE (1,5,6,11,14,16,17,19,20,21,23,24), AES (2,8,10,12,15,22), LST (7,9,13,25,26,27).

Result Interpretation

Finish the 27 questions and you get your results straight away — no account, no sign-up, no waiting.

We calculate your total from your answers, then give you a plain-language explanation of what the numbers mean. Whenever possible, we also show how your results compare to population norms.

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