Subject Guide: Identifying and Finding Nursing and Psychosocial Instruments
Prepared by Sue Hollander and Marilyn Hall
Revised Fall 2006
| Overview |
Nursing and psychosocial instruments are an important part of clinical health care research. There are thousands of assessment tools available to researchers, but some are difficult to locate and retrieve in full text.
Once you have decided on a particular assessment tool, you will need to evaluate this instrument to determine if it is right for your research. This involves looking at the psychometrics of the tool itself, e.g. validity, reliability, sensitivity, and also examining the audience with whom the tool was validated, i.e., gender, age, ethnicity of subjects.
This guide will assist you in identifying, evaluating, and locating nursing and psychosocial instruments, with specific reference to the print and online resources available through the SDSU Library.
Where to Begin:
(depends of what you may already know about an instrument/your topic)If you know the name of an instrument and want to:
- find information about it, eg. description, reliability and validity
- locate the actual test
- find out who else has used it
- explore and see if there are different versions (eg. brief or short form, other language, etc.)
- know if it is an appropriate tool to use
If you have a topic in mind and need to find an instrument(s) to measure a variable, are you:
- required to see the actual full text instrument? Yes or No
- supposed to find out information about the tool? Yes or No
- hoping to find as many instruments as possible on this topic? Yes or No
- ready to focus and decide one aspect or variable is more important (e.g., age, ethnicity, reading level, language, length, etc)? Yes or No
Are you simply trying to find samples of questionnaires so you can design your own? (And perhaps locate design guidelines or issues to consider during this process.) Yes
What is reliability and validity and why does my professor care about it?
The article indicates I need to request permission to use this tool, why would I contact the author?
I have a name which is an acronym. Is PSQ the same as PSQ-18?
Other Information Available:
- Specific Article and Test Databases of Interest
- Other Relevant Guides
Tips and Tricks for Locating Instruments:
- If you think you may need to find an instrument at a later date, keep track of those you come across when reading journal articles.
- Remember, the age of the instrument itself is not an issue as long as the test is determined to be valid and reliable and it has been tested with subjects similar to those you will be including in your study. Frequently older instruments have had greater opportunity to be used and tested – old can be good! That said, be sure to look for updates and revisions.
- Try to keep your options open when selecting the instrument(s). You may find several instruments that could be used to measure the same thing and they may vary greatly in what they cover or in the characteristics of the actual subjects with which they have been used. Also, one test may be readily available while others are not.
- Search for acronyms as well as the complete name of the test.
- Examine dissertations -- they often are original research and may include copies of instruments used.
- Feel free to contact the author of articles using instruments of interest. Also, those researchers who created and validated their own original or modified instruments can be contacted. These individuals may share tips to access the instrument, send you copies of the instrument and/or provide permission to use the instrument. Note: Contact information provided in the description of articles in databases such as CINAHL is only accurate at the time of publication. You may need to locate current contact information. Please ask a librarian if you need assistance.
- Broaden your searches to article databases outside your field. For instance, nursing students testing variables with elementary students may want to search in education databases in addition to those in health and psychology.
- When searching, you don’t always need to enter the word instrument, survey, etc. Some databases may use slightly different terminology, and such variants can, at times, be of value. SEE: Specific Article and Test Databases of Interest
- Consider related terms to search. For instance, you may find useful information using burnout or related terms including occupational stress, job satisfaction, and more. Hint: Jot these terms down as you come across them. This will help remind you to use them when searching various databases.
- If an instrument is critiqued or reviewed in a book, that alone does not necessarily mean it is appropriate for you to use. Be sure to examine the psychometrics, e.g. validity, reliability, sensitivity and specificity, and also note the audience with whom the tool was validated, i.e. gender, age, ethnicity of subjects.
Need Additional Help?
For additional information on finding materials in the SDSU library, evaluating information, locating and using style manuals and citation guides, go to the Library Home Page and click on “Research”.
For additional assistance in searching CINAHL or other library databases, visit the Reference Desk under the Dome entrance or click on the Ask a Librarian (24/7 online chat reference with an academic librarian). You can also make an appointment with one of the health or life sciences librarians:
Sue Hollander: sholland@rohan.sdsu.edu, 619-594-2535
Marilyn Hall: mehall@mail.sdsu.edu, 619-594-5864
Anne Turhollow: turhollo@mail.sdsu.edu, 619-594-4921
