Psychological tests (aka: surveys, research instruments, scales, measures, inventories, assessments) may take the form of:
- published instruments: These are available commercially for a fee from the test publisher.
- unpublished instruments: You may be able to find these in academic books or research articles in databases.
Finding "Unpublished" Tests
You may be able to find the full text of tests and measures used in research studies by searching for the name of the test in an academic database:
- PsycTESTS via EBSCO This link opens in a new windowPsycTESTS is a collection of materials containing psychological measures, scales, surveys, and other instruments. Full text coverage is available.
Check out this video from APA to help identify PsycTest sources using EBSCO:
Quick Tip:
If you find an instrument in PsycTESTS that is NOT fulltext, check the name of the publication the test lives in--this should be in the record's description under 'Source Citation'. Then look up the article title in the library catalog. If you find fulltext of the article, the instrument should be with it as well.
You may also have success searching specific journals like Psychological Assessment or Educational and Psychological Measurement. You can access these--and many other journal titles--through Journal Finder.
Finding "Published" Tests
Two notable publications at Smith Library that index published instruments include:
Tests in Print VIII by Call Number: R 153.9016 T28te8 2011ISBN: 9780910674621Publication Date: 2011You can find the latest volume of TIP in the reference section at Smith Library. As the most comprehensive index to commercially available tests published in English, this volume contains information on more than three thousand testing instruments. Detailed descriptions of each test include specific data on its purpose, target population, scoring, and pricing. Indexes of test titles, publishers, acronyms, and subject classifications are provided as well as notations on out-of-print tests. This book provides the specific information about testing required by professionals in diverse areas such as education, psychology, counseling, management, personnel, health care, career planning, sociology, child development, social science, and research. It also serves as a comprehensive index to the Mental Measurements Yearbook series by directing readers to the appropriate volume for reviews of specific tests
Mental Measurements Yearbook by Call Number: R 153.9016 M52m; Older volumes: 153.9016 M52mHPU Libraries holds the most recent (18th and 19th) volumes of the MMY series in the reference section on the main floor of Smith Library. Previous volumes, ranging from the 5th to the 17th, are located on the third floor under the Dewey number 153.9016 M52m.
Entries include descriptive information, pricing information, and reviews of tests that are new or revised since publication of the previous yearbook. According to the publisher's website, "The MMY includes timely, consumer-oriented test reviews, providing evaluative information to promote and encourage informed test selection.
Typical MMY test entries include descriptive information, one or two professional reviews, and reviewer references. To be reviewed in the MMY a test must be commercially available, be published in the English language, and be new, revised, or widely used since it last appeared in the MMY series."
- Buros Center for Testing
Provides a comprehensive list of all tests reviewed in the Mental Measurements Yearbook series, along with the corresponding volume
