Education Liaison Librarian
Finding and Using Instruments
Many tests and other instruments are used in the fields of education and psychology. "Published" tests are available from commercial publishers and are typically subject to various restrictions. Using them normally requires contacting the author or publisher to request a copy of the instrument or permission to use it. There is often a cost associated with use.
"Unpublished tests" are not commercially available for purchase. Some are difficult to locate, while others are found in journal articles or books. Sometimes, the author gives permission to reproduce or use the instrument. It may be unclear if use is permitted or not; in that case, you should assume that you do not have permission to use the instrument. You may decide to contact the author for permission to use or modify the instrument. It is the user’s responsibility when using any test to adhere to copyright requirements.
Online Databases
- Mental Measurements Yearbook This link opens in a new windowProduced by the Buros Institute at the University of Nebraska, the Mental Measurements Yearbook (MMY) provides users with a comprehensive guide to over 2,000 contemporary testing instruments. MMY contains information needed to evaluate tests in psychology, education, and business. Entries contain information such as test purpose, publishers, and price, as well as edited reviews written by content area experts. To be included, a test must be commercially available, be published in the English langauge, and be new or revised since it last appeared in the series. The database provides coverage from Volume 9 to date; use the print set (described below) for earlier entries.
- ERIC This link opens in a new windowAlso known as Education Resource Information Center, this database provides access to literature in the field of education, with many links to the full-text documents.
- APA PsycInfo This link opens in a new windowThe APA PsycInfo from the American Psychological Association (APA), includes abstracts of scholarly journal articles, book chapters, books, and dissertations, is the largest resource devoted to peer-reviewed literature in behavioral science and mental health. Provides citations and abstracts to journal articles in the professional and academic literature in psychology and related disciplines including medicine, psychiatry, nursing, sociology, social work, education, business, pharmacology, physiology, law, linguistics. Includes international material selected from periodicals in dozens of languages. Coverage from 1800 to present.
- APA PsycTests This link opens in a new windowPsycTESTS is an APA (American Psychological Association) database that offers psychological tests and measures, including thousands of actual test instruments and test items that are available for immediate download and use in research and teaching.