Psychology: Finding Tests & Measures

Commercial tests are standardized tests that are available through commercial vendors. These are usually available if you purchase them, and you often need to have special qualifications to administer these tests.

It is important to find out as soon as possible if the test you are looking for is only available commercially. Why?

• Commercial tests can be expensive, and their usage can be restriced,
• For this reason, if your test is commercial, you may want to consider looking for allternative tests available in PsycTests, PsycInfo, or our book collection. 

Boston College subscribes to Mental Measurements Yearbook, a database that reviews only commercial tests.

• Search Mental Measurements Yearbook for the name of the test you are looking for.
• If Mental Measurements Yearbook has a description and review for the test you are looking for, it is a commercial test.

We recommend taking the following steps:

1. The Educational Resource Center (ERC) has a collection of commercial tests. Look up the title of your test in Holmes to find out if the ERC has a copy of the test.
2. If Holmes indicates that the test is at the ERC, please contact an ERC staff member (erc@bc.edu) to find out if you can get a copy of the test. It is important that you do this because many of these tests are restricted to students taking certain courses, or you may need permission from a professor to get a copy of the test.
3. If the test at the ERC is restricted, please consider looking at more freely available alternatives in PsycTests, PsycInfo, or the book collection in the O'Neill Library.