Alternate forms reliability of the Behavioral Relaxation Scale (BRS; Poppen,1998), a direct
observation measure of relaxed behavior, was examined. A single BRS score, based on long duration
observation (5-minute), has been found to be a valid measure of relaxation and is correlated with selfreport
and some physiological measures. Recently, alternate forms of BRS observation have appeared in
the literature; however, it is unknown if alternate forms are reliable relative to the long form observation
method. BRS data from 10 adults, taking part in research on Behavioral Relaxation Training (BRT), were
examined. Correlation analyses of long form BRS scores, interval-by-interval BRS (very short form: one
60-second; short form: two 60-second; medium form: three 60-second intervals) and composite BRS
scores obtained from a single 120- or 180-second observation were conducted. All alternate forms BRS
observation methods were robustly associated with long form BRS scores (r = > .80, p = .005). Alternate
forms BRS observation methods provide more flexibility in applied situations without loss of reliability
when measuring overt relaxed behavior. Further research needs to examine reliability of alternate forms
BRS observation methods using physiological measures and direct observation measures as criterion
variables and clinical