Library Guides: IHW 312: Research Design &amp; Analysis: Instruments

Caveats about Finding Research Instruments

Obtaining research instruments can be complicated and their availability varies.

Published/Commercial instruments often charge for their use. Some require users to have specific licenses or credentials to access them. For these type of instruments, you may only be able to find test reviews or studies that cite them.
Unpublished/Noncommercial instruments are often more accessible and do not charge for their use. These instruments may be located within journal articles, dissertations, or books.s.
Try the suggestions below to find instruments, or contact us for assistance locating an instrument on your topic.
See the library's Tests and Measures guide for more assistance.

Searching for Instruments using PsycTESTS

PsycTESTS is a fantastic source of instruments for some topics, and will have nothing relevant on other topics. Try a quick search or two; if you're not finding anything relevant, try searching ProQuest Dissertations instead.

APA PsycTESTS This link opens in a new window
Search for ready-to-use tests and measures relevant to psychology and related fields such as education, communication, medicine, business, and more. Tests are provided (when available) along with reliability and validity data.

Eventual tutorial on using PsycTESTS embedded here

Searching for Tests using ProQuest Dissertations

Dissertations can be a gold mine for locating sample surveys and instruments, since the dissertation often includes a copy of the test or survey that was used during the dissertation research as an appendix. To locate dissertations, search:

ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global This link opens in a new window
Search dissertations and theses from around the world from 1743-present. Includes over 1 million full text dissertations (particularly 1997-present). Dissertations not available online may be requested via interlibrary loan (UP ILLiad). See the Dissertations guide for more options for accessing freely available online dissertations.

Tips for ProQuest Dissertations

For a quick overview of the dissertation's topic (and insight into the author's research methods), view the Abstract/Details. Choose Download PDF to see the full dissertation.

Survey instruments are usually included in the appendices at the end of the dissertation.