Youth Measures Inventory

An inventory of youth-friendly and open access measures
to evaluate youth programs

HOW-TO GUIDE
PROCESS MEASURES
OUTCOME MEASURES
QUALITATIVE TOOLS

A Guide to the Cover Sheets

Each of the measures has a cover sheet outlining the following important information to help you decide if it is the right fit for your youth program:

overview  OVERVIEW

A description of the measure, including its purpose

subscales-2  SUBSCALES

The different topics/domains within the measure with sample questions if applicable (e.g., leadership, social support, skill-building opportunities, self-efficacy).

SteppingUpSTEPPING UP

The Stepping Up theme(s) and outcome(s) related to the measure

TargetAudience  TARGET POPULATION

  • The specific population (e.g., Aboriginal youth, youth suffering from depression) that the measure is developed for, if applicable
  • What population (e.g., child, parent, program staff), as well as the age of participants that the measure has been validated for

Length LENGTH AND HOW IT MEASURES

  • How many questions there are in the measure
  • Which way the questions can be answered (e.g., scale from 1 to 7, not at all vs. very frequently)
  • How the measure is administered (e.g., pen and paper, orally, online, interview)
  • What language(s) the measure is available in
  • How to calculate a score (e.g., score for the total measure, score for certain subscales of the measure)

Developer  DEVELOPERS

  • The author(s) who developed the measure and/or the organization
  • Information on previous versions of the measure, if necessary

GoodToKnow  GOOD TO KNOW

Any additional information such as necessary permissions and costs, if applicable

Psychometrics PSYCHOMETRICS

  • Reliability: The statistic that tells one if the measure produces stable and consistent results (e.g. internal consistency, test-retest reliability, inter-rater reliability)
  • Validity: The statistic that tells one how well the measure actually measures what it claims to measure (e.g. content validity, construct validity)
Learn more about psychometric properties
  •  The statistical values for the reliability and validity are meant to be used a reference to support the development of your own program evaluation tools.
  • When a measure is modified to fit your program evaluation needs by either adding or eliminating questions, it might change the psychometric properties of the measure.
  • If there is no psychometric information for a measure, this does not mean that the measure is not reliable and valid. It just means that there has not been a rigourous testing of the measure by the developers or other researchers.
  • Please refer to the psychometrics provided, as well as any resources provided in the ‘Learn More’ section before deciding to use only a part of the measure.

LearnMore LEARN MORE

  • The author(s) who developed the measure and/or the organization
  • Information on previous versions of the measure, if necessary