Empathy Quotient – Short Form (EQ-10)

Background / Development

The Empathy Quotient – Short Form (EQ-10) was developed by Allison, Baron-Cohen, and colleagues at the University of Cambridge as a concise version of the full 60-item EQ.

It was designed to provide a rapid yet reliable assessment of empathy for use in clinical screening and large-scale research contexts.

The short form maintains alignment with the conceptual foundation of the full EQ, measuring both cognitive and affective empathy.

Purpose / Intended Use

The EQ-10 serves as a brief self-report measure of empathy and social understanding.

It is ideal for screening or research applications where time constraints prevent use of the full EQ.

Like the original version, the EQ-10 helps identify reduced empathic capacity often associated with autism spectrum traits, while also being sensitive to empathy differences across general populations.

It is not diagnostic but functions as a complementary indicator within broader psychological or neurodevelopmental assessment.

Psychometric Properties

The EQ-10 demonstrates good internal reliability and strong correlation with the full EQ:

• Internal consistency: α ≈ 0.83
• Test–retest reliability: r ≈ 0.78
• Correlation with full EQ: r ≈ 0.93
• Validity: Retains discrimination between autistic and neurotypical populations

Its brevity does not substantially compromise measurement accuracy, making it practical for high-volume or digital assessments.

Structure and Content

The EQ-10 contains 10 self-report statements, each rated on a 4-point Likert scale (Strongly agree to Strongly disagree).

Items reflect key aspects of empathic thinking and emotional responsiveness, balanced across cognitive and affective domains.

The form is self-administered and requires less than two minutes to complete, making it suitable for use in both clinical intake and research survey settings.

Scoring and Interpretation

Each empathy-indicating response is scored 1 point, producing a total score from 0–10.

• Higher scores = stronger empathic tendencies
• Lower scores = reduced empathy or emotional attunement

Indicative guidance:

• 0–3: Low empathy (possible social–emotional impairment)
• 4–6: Average range
• 7–10: High empathy

Scores should be interpreted alongside other clinical data, personality traits, and situational context.

Clinical Application

The EQ-10 is used as a quick screening tool in clinical, occupational, or research settings to estimate empathic functioning.

It is especially effective when paired with the Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ) or RAADS-R for a balanced profile of social cognition and emotional insight.

Its simplicity supports large-scale online surveys, intake forms, or pre-assessment triage where time and participant burden are key considerations.

References / Sources

Allison, C., Baron-Cohen, S., Wheelwright, S., Stone, M. H., & Muncer, S. J. (2011). The Empathy Quotient (EQ) Short Forms: A cross-validation of the 40-item and 10-item versions. Personality and Individual Differences, 51(7), 829–835. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2011.07.005