| Source | What it gives you | Best for | Where it falls short |
|---|---|---|---|
| Developer or author website | The instrument, scoring rules and sometimes a manual. Example: the UWES test manual on Wilmar Schaufeli’s site describes 17 items and a shortened 9-item version; the Ohio State page for the Teachers’ Sense of Efficacy Scale lists a 24-item and a 12-item form | The authoritative version of the items and scoring | Only covers that one instrument; terms of use vary |
| Original validation article (via Google Scholar or your library) | How the instrument was built, its dimensions and first reliability and validity evidence | Citing the instrument correctly | Evidence comes from the original sample, often not South African |
| South African validation studies in journals | Reliability and validity evidence from local samples, for example a psychometric analysis of the UWES in the South African Police Service | Showing the instrument works in a South African context | Not every instrument has one; sample may differ from yours |
| Mental Measurements Yearbook (Buros) | Descriptive information and two professional reviews per test; commercially available tests in English | Judging published tests critically | Commercial tests only; access usually through a library |
| PsycTESTS (APA) | A database of tests and measures; it holds a record for the UWES-17, for example | Finding the right instrument for a psychological construct | Library subscription needed; check your library’s coverage |
| COSMIN website and database of systematic reviews | A taxonomy of measurement properties, checklists and a database of systematic reviews of outcome measures | Health instruments and judging the quality of validation studies | Focused on health measurement instruments |
The best route for most South African students is to combine three of these: find the instrument through a database or a review, open the developer’s own page for the items and terms of use, then look for a South African validation study to cite alongside the original. The rest of this guide explains each source, how to judge what you find, and how to run the search.
What does “validated” actually mean for a dissertation?
A validated questionnaire is one whose developers have published evidence that it measures what it claims to measure and does so consistently, usually reliability evidence and several kinds of validity evidence. “Validated” is never a permanent label. Evidence is gathered in specific samples, so your examiner will want to know whether it holds for a South African sample like yours. The site’s guide to proving a questionnaire is valid explains the evidence you add in your own study, and the guide to reporting Cronbach’s alpha explains the reliability step.
1. The developer’s website: the authoritative version
Suits you if you already know the instrument’s name. The developer’s page is where the items, scoring instructions and terms of use are most likely to be current. Two examples show what to look for.
- The UWES test manual on Wilmar Schaufeli’s website describes the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale as made up of three scales, vigor, dedication and absorption. The 17-item version has six vigor items, five dedication items and six absorption items, and a shortened version has three items per scale (nine in total). Responses use a frequency scale from 0 (never) to 6 (always, or every day). The manual’s international database includes a South African sample of 2,547 respondents.
- The Ohio State University instrument page for the Teachers’ Sense of Efficacy Scale lists a 24-item long form and a 12-item short form, with three factors: efficacy in student engagement, in instructional practices and in classroom management.
Where it falls short: a developer’s page does not tell you whether the instrument suits a South African sample. It also may not give permission to use or adapt it, so read the terms of use and, where required, ask for written permission. The site’s guides to validated scales for an HRM dissertation and validated scales for a nursing research report cover licensing and cost.
2. The original validation article and a South African validation study
Suits you if you need to cite and justify the instrument. Search for the original article (for the UWES, Schaufeli, Bakker and Salanova (2006) in Educational and Psychological Measurement), then search for a validation in a South African sample. For the UWES, one example is Storm and Rothmann (2003), “A psychometric analysis of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale in the South African police service”, published in the SA Journal of Industrial Psychology. The pair gives your examiner both the source of the instrument and local evidence.
Where it falls short: a South African validation may use a very different group from yours (police officers, not nurses). Report the sample it used and do not stretch its conclusions. Read the abstract and methods to check which language version and which sample the study used. The site’s guide to DHET-accredited journals helps you judge where such studies are published.
3. Mental Measurements Yearbook: critical reviews of published tests
Suits you if you are choosing between commercially published psychological or educational tests. According to the Buros Center for Testing, the Mental Measurements Yearbook includes consumer-oriented test reviews meant to promote informed test selection. Each test entry carries descriptive information, two professional reviews and reviewer references, and the Yearbook covers commercially available tests in English that are new, revised or widely used. It is published on a three-year cycle.
Where it falls short: it reviews commercial tests, so a freely published research scale may not be in it, and the reviews are written for a mainly international readership. Access is normally through a university library.
4. PsycTESTS: a database of tests and measures
Suits you if your construct is psychological and your library subscribes. PsycTESTS is the American Psychological Association’s database of tests and measures. Its coverage is visible from outside: for example, a PsycTESTS record exists for the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale-17, identified by a DOI. Ask your subject librarian what your university’s subscription covers and whether the record includes the items.
Where it falls short: a record in a database is not a permission to use the instrument, and a record is not proof of validity. Treat it as a finding aid that points you to the original article and developer.
5. COSMIN: for health instruments and for judging validation quality
Suits you if you work in nursing, public health, physiotherapy or another health field. COSMIN describes itself as an international initiative of researchers in epidemiology, psychometrics, medicine and health care, aimed at improving the selection of outcome measurement instruments. Its website offers a taxonomy of measurement properties, a database of systematic reviews that can save time when you look for the best available instruments, checklists for assessing study quality and search filters for PubMed and Embase.
Where it falls short: it is built around health outcome measures and clinical research. For a management or education construct it will not list the instrument, though its taxonomy of measurement properties is still a good way to structure your methods section.
Worked example: finding a work engagement instrument
Illustrative search, not a real study. Suppose your honours project is on work engagement among call-centre employees in Johannesburg.
- Find the name. A database or a recent South African study on work engagement points you to the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale.
- Open the developer’s page. The test manual tells you the structure (vigor, dedication, absorption), the 17-item and 9-item versions and the response scale. Note the terms of use.
- Cite the original article. Schaufeli, Bakker and Salanova (2006) for the short version, and Schaufeli, Salanova, González-Romá and Bakker (2002) for the 17-item version.
- Find local evidence. Storm and Rothmann (2003) analysed the UWES in the South African Police Service. Read the methods to see which sample and which language version they used.
- Decide what you must report yourself. Your own reliability (Cronbach’s alpha for each of the three subscales) and a short statement of validity evidence from your sample.
Notice that the example never relies on a single source: the manual, the original article and the local study each answer a different examiner question.
A checklist for judging a candidate instrument
| Question | Where to look |
|---|---|
| Does it measure my construct as I define it? | Developer’s page, original article, your clarification of key terms |
| What reliability and validity evidence exists? | Original and local validation articles; COSMIN taxonomy for the types of evidence |
| Has it been used in South African samples? | Journals such as the SA Journal of Industrial Psychology; Google Scholar searches |
| Is it available in the language my participants use? | Developer’s translations; documented translation procedures |
| Am I allowed to use it, and at what cost? | Terms of use; written permission; publisher or test distributor |
| How long does it take to complete? | Item count and scale; pilot test |
What if there is no South African validation?
You can still use a well-validated international instrument, but your methodology chapter must be honest about it. Report the instrument’s origin and the evidence from the original study, state that no South African validation was found (only if your search was careful), pilot the instrument with a small sample from your population, and report reliability from your own data. If you translate or adapt items, follow a documented translation procedure and say so. State the limitation in the final chapter.
Which source should you choose?
For a psychology, education or management construct, use the developer’s page and the original article first, then look for a South African study in a journal such as the one in the example above. If your library subscribes, add the Mental Measurements Yearbook or PsycTESTS to check the instrument against other options. For a health construct, add COSMIN’s database of systematic reviews. If your search finds nothing, ask your subject librarian, who can search subscription databases you cannot reach. When you have chosen, use the earlier theses in your faculty’s repository to see how others reported the same instrument, following the site’s guide to finding previous South African dissertations.
How can Tesify help after you choose an instrument?
Describing the instrument, its source, its evidence and your own reliability results in the methodology chapter is a task of organising and consistency. 9,000+ students have written 15,000+ chapters with Tesify, which helps you structure and organise your dissertation, and the text stays 100% written by you. Organise your instrument section with Tesify.
Frequently asked questions
Where do I find a validated questionnaire for my dissertation?
Start with the developer’s website and the original validation article, then look for South African validation studies in journals, and use databases such as the Mental Measurements Yearbook, PsycTESTS or COSMIN through your library.
Is a published questionnaire free to use?
Not automatically. Check the developer’s stated terms of use and ask for written permission where required.
What if no South African validation exists?
You can still use the instrument, but you must report reliability and basic validity evidence from your own sample and discuss the limitation.
What does the Mental Measurements Yearbook provide?
Each test entry carries descriptive information and two professional reviews. It covers commercially available tests in English.
Can I translate an instrument into isiZulu or Afrikaans?
Yes, but translation should follow a documented procedure, and you should report reliability in your own sample because translation can change how items behave.
Can I shorten a validated scale?
Only if the developer provides a validated short form or you can justify the change. Otherwise the validation evidence does not carry over.
What is COSMIN?
COSMIN is an international initiative on the selection of health measurement instruments. Its website offers a taxonomy of measurement properties, a database of systematic reviews and checklists for assessing studies.