BackgroundThe concept and assessment of resilience have attracted considerable attention in recent years, but none of the instruments developed to measure resilience in adolescents have been adapted to the Spanish context. The Adolescent Resilience Questionnaire (ARQ) provides a comprehensive and multidimensional assessment of the resources associated with resilience in adolescents.MethodsThis study analyzes the psychometric properties of the ARQ. Participants included a community sample of 1101 Spanish adolescents (53.5 % boys) aged 12–17 years (M = 14.51; SD = 1.755).ResultsResults confirm the factor structure based on 12 scales. Internal consistency was generally adequate (between .60 and .84), although the unacceptable coefficient for the Empathy/Tolerance scale (α = .38) means that this scale needs to be revised for the Spanish context. Relationships between ARQ scales and psychopathology were in the expected direction and magnitude. Some gender differences were observed, with higher scores for boys on Confidence and Negative cognition.ConclusionsThe Spanish version of the ARQ can help to identify personal characteristics associated with resilience and signs of positive engagement with family, peers, school, and the community. It can identify those adolescents most likely to show resilience in response to adversity, as well as those who may be vulnerable under situations of stress.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12955-015-0259-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.