Overview
The AFQ-Y is a 17-item self-report measure of psychological inflexibility associated with cognitive fusion and experiential avoidance, developed within Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). Its 8-item short form (AFQ-Y8) assesses the same broad process. The original study evaluated both versions in US school samples (Greco et al., 2008). The AFQ-Y8 comprises eight items selected from the full AFQ-Y. Greco et al. (2008) suggested the AFQ-Y8 for group research and cautioned against assuming its suitability for individual clinical assessment. Independent validations have been conducted in Swedish, Spanish, Hungarian, Persian, Turkish and Finnish populations. The original US development/validation work primarily involved schoolchildren from Grades 5-10 (10 - 15 years) with a mean age of 13 years. Later translated AFQ-Y8 studies include ages 11–20 Szemenyei, et al. (2020; online 2018).Scoring & Interpretation
Items are rated 0 (not at all true) to 4 (very true). Total scores are obtained by summing all responses: AFQ-Y range 0–68 (17 items); AFQ-Y8 range 0–32 (8 items). Higher scores indicate greater psychological inflexibility.Psychometric Properties
Internal Consistency
Internal consistency in the original development study was strong (n=329): AFQ-Y Cronbach’s α=.90, item-total r=.47–.67; AFQ-Y8 α=.83, item-total r=.48–.64 (Greco et al., 2008).
Test-Retest Reliability
In the original development paper no test-retest reliability was reported (Greco et al., 2008), however, a recent Finnish study of the AFQ-Y8, reported seven-week ICC=.84 (Navarrete et al., 2026) supporting temporal stability in this sample.
Factor Structure
The original development study suggests the AFQ-Y17 and AFQ-Y8 support a one-factor structure with stronger support found for the AFQ-Y8. Subsequent work by Livheim et al. (2016) using a Swedish translation of the AFQ-Y8 and Navarrete et al. (2026) using a Finnish translation of the AFQ-Y8 also found support for a one-factor structure
Validity
Greco et al. (2008) reported scores on the AFQ-Y and AFQ-Y8 correlated significantly in the expected directions with measures of symptoms and functioning. Both versions of the AFQ-Y correlated positively with child-reported anxiety, somatic complaints, and problem behaviour (medium to large effect sizes) and negatively with overall quality of life (medium to large effect sizes). Scores on the AFQ-Y and AFQ-Y8 correlated significantly (though less consistently) with teacher-rated behaviour problems, academic competence, and social skills.
Measurement Invariance
Measurement invariance was not reported in the original development work (Greco et al., 2008). Szemenyei et al. (2020) found partial age-group invariance (11–14 vs 15–20 years) in a Hungarian sample.
Access
Copies of the measures are available from http://ruthbaer.com/academics/AFQ-Y.pdfExplicit permission to reproduce, host or redistribute the measure has not been verified. Please contact author before use.