Finding instruments, measures, scales & tests in education, health, psychology & social work

About this Guide

This guide is designed to be a resource for research involving instruments, measures, scales and tests. The guide is organized in three sections by research objective.

Section one points to sources and search techniques to use in identifying the measures that exist for assessing a specific condition, competency, etc.

Section two outlines tools available to locate descriptive information, critical reviews, or references related to the construction, validity, use, etc. of specific instruments.

Section three provides search tips and sources for locating a copy (free or for sale) of a test, measure, etc. The McGill University Library does not maintain a test collection; however, there are several University departments that maintain their own collections of this type (see “Local Resources”).

This guide was created by Jill Boruff, Sara Holder, Lorie Kloda, and Lindsey Sikora in May 2011. For assistance using the guide, or questions about finding instruments, measures, scales and tests, please contact a liaison librarian your subject area (e.g. nursing, medicine, education, psychology, social work). Find your liaison librarian.

[1] Identifying an Instrument, Measure, Scale or Test:

Books that Compile, Describe, & Review Tests, Instruments & Measures:

• Compendium of Quality of Life Instruments (1998)
  Includes the actual measure, as well as a description, references to its use, and information on reliability and validity.
• Measuring Health: A Guide to Rating Scales and Questionnaires 3rd ed. (2006) eBook
  Includes the actual measure, as well as a description, references to its use, and information on reliability and validity.
• Measuring Health: A Review of Quality of Life Measurement Scales 3rd ed. (2005)
  Includes a description of the measure, references to its use, and information on reliability and validity.
• Functional Assessment and Outcome Measures for the Rehabilitation Health Professional (1997)
  Includes the actual measure, as well as a description, references to its use, and information on reliability and validity.
• Répertoire des outils d’évaluation en français pour la réadaptation (2004)
  Rehabilitation assessment tools available in French. Includes a description of the measure, references to its use, information on reliability and validity, and where to get the measure.
• Measuring Disease: A Review of Disease-specific Quality of Life Measurement Scales 2nd ed. (2001)
  Includes a description of the measure, references to its use, and information on reliability and validity.
• Measurement Scales Used in Elderly Care (2008)
  Includes the actual measure, as well as a description, references to its use, and information on reliability and validity.
• Instruments for Clinical Health-care Research (2004)
  Includes a description of the measure, references to its use, and information on reliability and validity.
• Tests: A Comprehensive Reference for Assessments in Psychology, Education, and Business, 6th ed. (2008)
  Includes descriptions of 2000+ tests from 164+ publishers (no reviews).
• Encyclopedia of Psychological Assessment, 2 vols. (2003)
  Includes 235 conceptual and disorder-related entries, organized alphabetically, each with a section on relevant assessment devices.
• Directory of Psychological Tests in the Sport and Exercise Sciences, 2nd ed. (2000)
  Includes summaries of 314 tests compiled with sections on purpose, description, construction, reliability/validity, availability and references.
• The Achievement Test Desk Reference (ATDR) : Comprehensive Assessment and Learning Disabilities (2002)
  Includes descriptions and critical reviews of over 50 achievement tests with an innovative model for learning disability evaluation following current assessment and interpretation methods.

[2] Previous Uses of the Instrument, Measure, Scale or Test:

Finding research studies that used the instrument, or report its validity, reliability, or psychometric properties (i.e., when you know the instrument, and want to find out more about it)

Using Library Databases

Tips for searching for health-related quality of life studies.

[3] Accessing the Actual Instrument, Measure, Scale or Test:

Obtaining the published or free copy of the instrument, or how to buy it (i.e., when you want to use the instrument in practice or for research)

Websites and Custom Search Engines:

The following sources are searchable databases for locating known assessment instruments. The databases were created by examining the contents of numerous compilation volumes. Entries will generally list instrument title, author, date, source volume title and page number. McGill Library will have many but not all of the compilation volumes listed.

• PsycTESTS
• Tests in Compilation Volumes (University of Texas)
• SDSU Test Finder (San Diego State University)
• USF Test and Measures Collection (University of South Florida)

Local Resources:

McGill University

• Department of Educational and Counseling Psychology Assessment Library (Education Bldg, Rm 614G, 514-398-4363) ecptestlib [at] mcgill [dot] ca (Assessment Library Coordinator)
  Use restricted to graduate students from the School Psychology, Counselling Psychology and Inclusive Education programs to provide access to the necessary standardized materials to conduct psychological and cognitive assessments. Measures and related materials can be loaned to individual students as part of their course requirements and are collected based on the Instructors’ lists indicated on course outlines.

Montreal

• Université de Montreal Testothèque (Université de Montréal, Pavillon Marie- Victorin, Room D -329, (514) 343-6111 x26906)
  At UdeM, it is the mandate of the Testothèque to acquire and make tests available for clinical testing. The Testothèque contains a selection of tests, questionnaires and measurement scales in psychology and related fields, as well as theses and dissertations that have been produced by students in the Department of Psychology for the past 5 years. A selection of books on the tests are also available.

Commercial Publishers/Distributors:

• Pearson Assessment/PsychCorp
  About the company: “Pearson is the global leader in clinical and educational assessment, providing a wide range of assessment tools for ability, achievement, personality, behaviour, speech and language, occupational therapy, and career interests.[Their] respected brands include the Wechsler family of assessments, the MMPI® family of tests, the Beck inventories, the Millon™ inventories, the PPVT™-4, the Bayley-III® Scales of Infant and Toddler Development®, the BASC™ family of products, the Kaufman family of assessments, and many more”.
• SuperDuper
  Fun learning materials for kids with special needs, including autism, fine/gross motor skills, and phonology, to name a few of many. They make hundreds of creative, colorful educational and therapy materials.
• LinguiSystems, Inc
  LinguiSystems provides "innovative, effective, affordable, and therapeutically-sound materials for speech-language pathologists to service individuals of all ages".

Other Resources

• StrokEngine - Assess - Assessment instruments for stroke
• SUNY Fredonia, Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders
  A comprehensive online resource for communication sciences and disorders tests, assessments, books, etc.