Want to Measure Your Client’s Happiness? Start With These 6 Happiness Assessment Templates

Running happiness assessments can be frustrating when using non-standardized tools. Many therapists resort to self-created questionnaires that lack clinical validation, clear scoring, or consistency. This often results in unclear data, making it hard to accurately assess a client’s emotional & mental health progress over time. Without a reliable method, treatment planning becomes less effective and more time-consuming.

Premade, validated happiness assessments eliminate these issues by providing structured, research-backed tools. They offer clear scoring systems, interpretation guidelines, and normative benchmarks, ensuring consistency across sessions. These assessments save time, reduce guesswork, and support more informed clinical decisions. Therapists can focus on what matters most—helping clients build lasting emotional well-being.

World Health Organization Well-Being Index (WHO-5)

Purpose: The WHO-5 Well-Being Index is a short, global measure of subjective psychological well-being, focusing on positive mood, vitality, and general interest in life.

Why use it in therapy:

• Provides a quick snapshot of overall well-being in just 5 items.
• Tracks changes in mood and energy levels over time.
• Helps screen for depressive symptoms and guide further evaluation.

When to use it: Use in regular check-ins to assess general mental health or when clients report low motivation, fatigue, or emotional numbness.

Possible outcomes:

Outcomes
Poor well-being
Normal to High well-being
Optimal well-being

Try it yourself:

Flourishing Scale (FS)

Purpose: The Flourishing Scale measures social-psychological prosperity, including purpose, relationships, and self-esteem.

Why use it in therapy:

• Assesses positive aspects of mental health beyond symptom reduction.
• Supports strength-based therapy approaches.
• Encourages clients to explore meaning, purpose, and life satisfaction.

When to use it: Ideal for use during mid- to long-term therapy when focusing on growth, resilience, or positive psychology goals.

Possible outcomes:

Outcomes
No cutoff. Higher scores represent Flourishing resources & strengths.

Try it yourself

Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS)

Purpose: The Satisfaction With Life Scale assesses overall cognitive judgments of one's life satisfaction, independent of momentary mood.

Why use it in therapy:

• Offers a global measure of life satisfaction in just 5 questions.
• Complements clinical measures focused on symptoms or distress.
• Useful for goal-setting and tracking subjective progress.

When to use it: Use in the beginning and end of therapy to evaluate perceived life satisfaction changes.

Possible outcomes:

Outcomes
Extremely satisfied
Satisfied
Slightly satisfied
Neutral
Slightly dissatisfied
Dissatisfied
Extremely dissatisfied

Try it yourself:

Oxford Happiness Questionnaire

Purpose: The Oxford Happiness Questionnaire is a comprehensive measure of personal happiness, covering positive emotions, self-worth, and optimism.

Why use it in therapy:

• Provides a multidimensional profile of a client’s happiness.
• Useful in tracking therapeutic progress over time.
• Helps reframe goals from “reducing distress” to “building joy.”

When to use it: Best used during therapy focused on self-improvement, gratitude, or emotional positivity.

Possible outcomes:

Outcomes
Low happiness
Below Average happiness
Average happiness
Above Average happiness
High happiness

Try it yourself:

Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS)

Purpose: The Subjective Happiness Scale captures a person’s overall sense of personal happiness relative to others.

Why use it in therapy:

• Simple and intuitive, based on self-perceived happiness.
• Enhances emotional self-awareness and reflection.
• Useful for starting conversations around satisfaction and outlook.

When to use it: Use early in therapy as a baseline or during well-being check-ins.

Possible outcomes:

Outcomes
Feel happier than most people
Feel less happy than most people

Try it yourself:

Gratitude Scale (GQ-6)

Purpose: The Gratitude Questionnaire (GQ-6) measures individual differences in the frequency and intensity of grateful feelings.

Why use it in therapy:

• Fosters positive thinking and emotional resilience.
• Supports interventions related to mindfulness and well-being.
• Helps shift focus from negativity to appreciation.

When to use it: Use when working on gratitude journaling, mindset shifts, or after major life changes.

Possible outcome:

Outcomes
Low gratitude
Moderate gratitude
High gratitude

Try it yourself:

Conclusion

Using validated happiness assessments allows therapists to move beyond guesswork and gain meaningful insights into a client’s emotional well-being. The above validated assessments are not only reliable but also easy to integrate into sessions, helping guide personalized care.

From life satisfaction to gratitude, each scale serves a unique purpose in the therapeutic journey. By incorporating these assessments, therapists can track progress more effectively and foster lasting emotional growth.

Start using BlockSurvey today!