National Institute for Health and Care Research

Measuring what Matters in Healthcare: A Practical Guide to Psychometric Principles and Instrument Development

Journal article providing an introduction to theories, principles and practices of psychometrics, instrument properties, and scale development.

The paper introduces key concepts in psychometrics for clinicians and researchers interested in measurement and scale development. It highlights the importance of using psychometrically sound measurement instruments to ensure high-quality healthcare assessments. It also outlines with an example, the process of best- practice instrument development and validation as set out in the Consensus-based Standards for the selection of health status Measurement Instruments (COSMIN) (Mokkink et al., 2018).

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