A Valid and Reliable Stress ‘Risk-Assessment’

Our mission is to motivate and encourage employees to make stress their friend and not their enemy and to discover the power of "optimal" stress for peak performance, personal creativity and better co-worker relationships. 

Stressmaster International & Biologic Balance

Biologic Balance is an official licensed associate of Stressmaster International (SI). Stressmaster International (SI) has been providing stress management and stress mastery workshops and seminars for over 30 years. Over 600,000 people have taken our Stress Mastery Questionnaire (SMQ) and thousands have learned the secrets of mastering workplace and personal stress through our programs.

By partnering with SI, Biologic Balance can provide employers with evidence-based, highly-effective workplace stress mastery programs to help employees learn how to reduce, manage and master workplace stress. Our team can help employees to become resilient, productive and healthier. The content and focus of our programs vary with the needs of the employer, however, all of our programs highly informative, engaging and experiential.

Stress Mastery Questionnaire

The STRESS MASTERY QUESTIONNAIRE (SMQ) was created through extensive research by Dr. James C. Petersen, a noted stress psychologist, author, speaker and expert on individual and corporate stress management. Dr. Petersen developed the SMQ to help people learn about their stress "risk" areas and how stress can have a negative impact on one's health, work productivity, interpersonal relationships and overall quality of life.

Accredited by the American Institute of Stress (AIS), the SMQ is a valid and reliable stress "risk" assessment tool. The AIS seal and credentials inform the public that the certificate holder commands advanced knowledge of the latest stress research and stress management techniques.The SMQ was created using state-of-the-art psychometric test development methodology. After being used in a variety of stress management programs, as well as by patients in Dr. Petersen's Biofeedback and Stress Management Clinic, it was validated through a rigorous year-long study funded by the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (N.I.O.S.H.). The SMQ is one of only a few scientifically developed stress risk assessment tools currently available and is recognized as the "gold standard" for use in stress management training, coaching and personal self-development programs. The SMQ can be used with confidence in virtually any stress management or stress mastery program.

The Stress Mastery Program At A Glance

1. Stress Mastery Questionnaire

   • The first step in the Stress Mastery Program is to help clients, patients or trainees learn how to identify and understand the behaviors and attitudes that reflect underlying cause of stress. Stress shows itself in many different ways, such as in our behaviors, feelings and attitudes. Each person shows their stress differently and there is no one warning sign that tell us stress has become chronic and potentially harmful to health or well being. The key to mastering stress, whether at work or home, is to quickly recognize the warning signs of stress and then take steps to counteract one's stress and reduce the negative impact of stress. This is accomplished by taking the online Stress Mastery Questionnaire (SMQ)and receiving feedback that can be used to optimize stress for better health and peak performance. The SMQ provides a deeper understanding of how well someone is mastering stress on 11 carefully researched SMQ stress risk scales.

2. Stress Mastery Profile

   • Immediately after completing the SMQ online, each person receives feedback on their stress risk scores in the form of a Personal Stress Profile. The Profile compares a person's scores on each of the 11 SMQ scales to a norm group thereby showing one's level of stress "risk" for each of the scales; such as Anger, Perfectionism, Burnout, Disappointment and more.

3. Stress Mastery Report

   • Within a short time (less than 24 hours) a Detailed Stress Report is emailed to the trainer or coach for each client or employee who completed the SMQ. The Report shows the person's actual responses to the 87 questions and repeats the level of stress "risk" for each major Scale. Both the Profile and Report are important tools to providing clear feedback on what behaviors and thinking styles might be changed to prevent stress from recurring or to reduce the impact of stress on one's body, health and performance.

4. Stress Mastery Guide and Workbook

   • Armed with the information from the SMQ, PROFILE and REPORT, each person receives a copy of Stress Mastery Guide and Workbook (67 pp). The Guide provides detailed information about each of the 11 SMQ scales with recommendations on What to Know and What to Do to change or modify the underlying behavior or attitude causing stress. The Guide can be used as a self-study guide or integrated into a stress management/mastery training or coaching program.

   • In order to facilitate change and personal development, the Stress Mastery Workbook provides exercises and a way to journal important concepts, ideas and suggestions so that a plan for personal development can be created. The Workbook section highlights each scale’s questions with a place to write in reflections, comments and ideas on the meaning of the scale and what one might do to build stress mastery and resilience. The Guide/Workbook is essential to helping one to master stress and build resilience.