If you want to find an existing research instrument to use in your research, here's how to do it. The PsycInfo method guarantees you an instrument (but there may not be much on your topic), while HaPI might cover your topic but doesn't guarantee that the instrument is available. I’d recommend trying PsycInfo first, but then if that doesn’t have results for your topic, try HaPI.
Method 1: Use PsycInfo
- Go to PsycInfo.
- In the first search box put the topic you are interested in, and in the second box put the phrase TM Appended (this looks for a test/measure included as an appendix, reproduced as a figure in the text, or the items from the instrument are described in the methods section).
- You might have to keep the topic pretty broad to get results.
Method 2: Use HaPI
- Go to Health and Psychosocial Instruments (HaPI), which is a database devoted to identifying different behavioral measurement instruments.
- Enter your topic in the first search box and then scroll down and choose Primary Source in the Source Code box.
- Click on the title (not the PDF) of a result and scroll down to the Sample Items field, and look for the phrase “all items in this instrument are presented in the Source” (no way to add this to the search, unfortunately):
