Emotional Intelligence Test (Original TMMS)

The Scale

Take the Trait Meta-Mood Scale

Read each statement and choose the answer that best describes how you generally feel. There are no right or wrong answers, and it is best not to spend long on any one item.

Before you start: The original TMMS does not define clinical cutoffs; the readings below are interpretive bands based on your average response per dimension, not diagnostic categories.

I try to think good thoughts no matter how badly I feel.

People would be better off if they felt less and thought more.

I don’t think it’s worth paying attention to your emotions or moods.

I don’t usually care much about what I’m feeling.

Sometimes I can’t tell what my feelings are.

I am rarely confused about how I feel.

Feelings give direction to life.

Although I am sometimes sad, I have a mostly optimistic outlook.

When I am upset I realize that the “good things in life” are illusions.

I believe in acting from the heart.

I can never tell how I feel.

The best way for me to handle my feelings is to experience them to the fullest.

When I become upset I remind myself of all the pleasures in life.

My beliefs and opinions always seem to change depending on how I feel.

I am often aware of my feelings on a matter.

I am usually confused about how I feel.

One should never be guided by emotions.

I never give in to my emotions.

Although I am sometimes happy, I have a mostly pessimistic outlook.

I feel at ease about my emotions.

I pay a lot of attention to how I feel.

I can’t make sense out of my feelings.

I don’t pay much attention to my feelings.

I often think about my feelings.

I am usually very clear about my feelings.

No matter how badly I feel, I try to think about pleasant things.

Feelings are a weakness humans have.

I usually know my feelings about a matter.

It is usually a waste of time to think about your emotions.

I almost always know exactly how I am feeling.

0 / 30 answered

Interpretation

What Your Averages Mean

Each dimension is the mean of its items on the 1 to 5 scale, after reversing the statements worded in the negative. The bands are anchored to the scale itself, not to population norms.

Dimension	Reading	Average
Attention to feelings	Low attention: you tend not to notice or value what you feel	below 2.5
	Balanced attention	2.5 to 3.5
	High attention: strong focus on feelings, which can shade into over-monitoring	above 3.5
Clarity of feelings	Low clarity: feelings are often hard to tell apart	below 2.5
	Moderate clarity	2.5 to 3.5
	High clarity: you can usually name what you feel	above 3.5
Mood repair	Low repair: bad moods tend to stay	below 2.5
	Moderate repair	2.5 to 3.5
	High repair: you can usually move a bad mood along	above 3.5

The TMMS is a self-report measure of perceived emotional intelligence, not a diagnosis or an ability test. The 30 statements are reproduced from the original English scale of Salovey, Mayer, Goldman, Turvey and Palfai (1995): 13 items measure attention (8 reverse-scored), 11 measure clarity (5 reverse-scored) and 6 measure repair (2 reverse-scored). The abbreviated Spanish adaptation with validated cutoffs, the TMMS-24, is also free on this site. Your answers are processed entirely in your browser: nothing is sent, stored, or seen by anyone but you.

References

Salovey, P., & Mayer, J. D. (1990). Emotional intelligence. Imagination, Cognition and Personality, 9(3), 185-211. https://doi.org/10.2190/DUGG-P24E-52WK-6CDG

Salovey, P., Mayer, J. D., Goldman, S. L., Turvey, C., & Palfai, T. P. (1995). Emotional attention, clarity, and repair: Exploring emotional intelligence using the Trait Meta-Mood Scale. In J. W. Pennebaker (Ed.), Emotion, disclosure, and health (pp. 125-154). American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/10182-006

Fernández-Berrocal, P., Extremera, N., & Ramos, N. (2004). Validity and reliability of the Spanish modified version of the Trait Meta-Mood Scale. Psychological Reports, 94(3), 751-755. https://doi.org/10.2466/pr0.94.3.751-755

The founder of Baseline Psychotherapy holds a master's degree in emotional intelligence and has three published books.

Questions About This Test

Frequently Asked Questions

The Trait Meta-Mood Scale (TMMS) measures perceived emotional intelligence: how much attention you pay to your feelings, how clearly you can identify them, and how well you repair a negative mood. It was built by Peter Salovey and John Mayer, the researchers who introduced the concept of emotional intelligence in 1990, and published with colleagues in 1995. This page reproduces the 30-item version of the original English scale.

The TMMS-24 is the abbreviated Spanish adaptation, also free on this site. Fernández-Berrocal, Extremera and Ramos (2004) shortened the original scale to 24 items, reworded the negatively phrased statements in positive form and published sex-specific cutoffs validated in Spanish. This page keeps the 30 original English items, scores the reverse-keyed statements as the authors intended, and uses transparent interpretive bands instead of cutoffs, because the original scale does not define them.

Each dimension is the average of your answers on a 1 to 5 scale, after reversing the items worded in the negative. Clarity and repair read in the expected direction: higher tends to go with better regulation. Attention does not: a very high score can reflect excessive monitoring of feelings rather than a strength, especially when clarity and repair are low. The most useful reading is the profile of the three together.

Yes. The scale is scored in your browser: no answer is sent, stored or seen by anyone, and everything disappears when you close the page. There is no account and no email wall.

The Trait Meta-Mood Scale: measure your emotional intelligence

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What Your Averages Mean

Frequently Asked Questions

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