Cronbach's Alpha Values
Internal consistency
Cronbach's Alpha | Internal Consistency |
---|---|
0.9 ≤ α | Excellent |
0.8 ≤ α < 0.9 | Good |
0.7 ≤ α < 0.8 | Adequate |
0.6 ≤ α < 0.7 | Questionable |
contributed by Frank LaBanca, EdD
Cronbach's alpha measures internal consistency, meaning how much the items on a scale actually measure the same dimension. For example, when considering instrumentation for quantitative research, part of assessing a reliable instrument would include reviewing the Cronbach's alpha values for the scales. An example of this is reported below, for the School Attitudes Assessment Survey - Revised (SAAS-R):
As reported by McCoach and Siegle (2003), the scores demonstrated a classical theory internal consistency reliability coefficient of at least .85 on each of the five factors.
McCoach, D. B., & Siegle, D. (2003). The school attitude assessment survey – revised: A new instrument to identify academically able
students who underachieve. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 63(3), 414-429. DOI: 10.1177/0013164402251057.
"contributed by Lauren Moyer"