Measurement Repository

The ACHWM is a tablet-based survey designed to assess the health and well-being of Indigenous children and youth. Developed collaboratively with First Nation health leaders, children, and academic researchers, the ACHWM provides insights into wellness across four key domains: spiritual, emotional, physical, and mental health, reflecting the holistic perspective of the Medicine Wheel. Comprising 62 items (13 related to physical health, 24 to emotional health, 9 to mental health, and 16 to spiritual health) the ACHWM allows children to express their health experiences. Items are assessed on a 0-4 ordinal scale encompassing both frequency (0 = Never; 4 = Always) and importance (0 = Not Important; 4 = Extremely Important). Scores are averaged and converted to a range of 0 to 100, indicating well-being levels from poor to optimal. Versions are available for First Nations, Métis, children in family services, and in both French and English. For more information about the instrument and related publications, visit www.ACHWM.ca.

The Aboriginal Cultural Engagement Survey (ACES) was developed to measure Aboriginal cultural engagement, defined as the extent to which individuals participate in cultural activities and traditions. The measure was created to address gaps in culturally valid assessments within Aboriginal health and wellbeing services. Items ask about engagement in cultural traditions, activities, and practices such as traditional cooking, art, ceremony, and participation in community. The purpose of the measure is to assess cultural engagement as a protective factor for health and wellbeing, and to provide information that may inform culturally sensitive treatment planning and evaluation.

The Aboriginal Resilience and Recovery Questionnaire (ARRQ) was developed to assess resilience, healing, and recovery from trauma among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. It is a strengths-based measure that captures individual, relational, community, and cultural protective factors. The ARRQ was developed in collaboration with practitioners and clients of a Victorian Aboriginal community-controlled health service, using Indigenous research methodologies. The full ARRQ includes 60 items representing protective factors important to resilience and recovery, with items organized into subscales and single indicators. The ARRQ-25 is a short form of the questionnaire developed for use in clinical and research settings where a shorter tool is needed. It maintains the core focus on resilience and recovery processes and has been validated as part of studies on wellbeing and quality of life among Aboriginal peoples.

The Academic Self-Efficacy measure is an internally developed 8-item self-report scale (with an additional two items about the COVID-19 pandemic) designed to assess children’s perceptions of their capabilities and experiences in school. Items explore how often children feel safe in class, believe they can complete schoolwork with or without help, understand classroom material, learn new things, and perceive themselves as competent in schoolwork. Response options range from “Never” to “Always,” capturing a range of academic confidence and perceived ability. This measure is intended to provide insight into a child’s academic self-concept and can be used to inform supportive educational interventions and monitor progress over time.

The Food Choice Values Questionnaire (FCVQ) assesses factors that individuals consider when purchasing and consuming food. It includes items related to sensory appeal, safety, accessibility, convenience, health/weight control, organic foods, tradition, and comfort. The FCVQ provides insights into how food choice priorities vary across demographics and can inform culturally relevant nutrition interventions.

The Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) measure is a self-report tool used to assess exposure to potentially traumatic events occurring before age 18. The original ACE questionnaire includes items covering three types of abuse (emotional, physical, sexual) and four categories of household dysfunction (substance abuse, mental illness, incarceration, and violence toward mother). The version included in this Measurement Repository is a modified form of the ACE that differs slightly from the original measure in content and length, while maintaining the core goal of assessing cumulative childhood adversity. As with the original ACE framework, scores from this adapted version are used as indicators of risk associated with later health outcomes and can inform prevention, early intervention, and public health efforts.

The Alaska Native Wellness (ANW) Survey is a 24-item self-report instrument adapted from the Yup’ik Wellness Survey (YWS; Lardon et al., 2016). It measures subjective wellbeing among Alaska Native (AN) adults by assessing two domains: (1) wellness frequency, which captures how often respondents engage in specific cultural, social, and wellness-related practices, and (2) wellness importance, which evaluates the significance of these practices in daily life. Items include culturally relevant activities such as respecting elders, eating traditional foods, speaking Native languages, spending time outdoors, and engaging in spiritual or community practices. The survey is designed to represent a broader AN worldview and supports cross-community relevance.

The American Indian Enculturation Scale (AIES) is a self-report measure developed to assess the degree of identification with, participation in, and knowledge of traditional American Indian cultural practices and beliefs. The scale was designed for use in counseling, prevention, and community-based research to support culturally congruent approaches to health and well-being. Items reflect engagement with one’s tribal language, spiritual practices, ceremonies, and community life. Higher scores indicate stronger levels of enculturation, cultural pride, and connection to Indigenous lifeways, which have been shown to relate to greater resilience and psychological well-being.

The Anger measure evaluates the frequency with which youth experience feelings of anger and behavioral reactivity. It includes six items that assess emotional intensity (e.g., feeling angry or mad), impulsivity (e.g., being quick tempered, flying off the handle), and aggressive urges (e.g., feeling like hitting someone). Respondents indicate how often they experience each feeling or behavior using a 3-point Likert scale (Most of the time, Some of the time, None of the time), with a “Don’t Know/Refused” option. This measure helps identify patterns of anger expression and regulation among youth.

This measure assesses the quality of the emotional relationship between youth and their primary caregiver. It consists of five statements that explore the youth’s perceptions of their caregiver’s comfort, availability, love, and the youth’s emotional responses to separation. Youth are asked to indicate whether they agree or disagree with each statement, such as “[Caregiver] comforts me when I am upset or scared” and “It’s really hard for me to be away from [caregiver].” Responses can help identify youth who may be experiencing distress, uncertainty, or disruptions in their relationships with caregivers. This information can guide the provision of supportive services.

The Awareness of Connectedness (ACS) Scale is a culturally grounded measure designed to assess awareness of connectedness—a protective factor identified as central to Indigenous conceptions of wellness. The original 12-item ACS (Mohatt et al., 2011) measures an individual’s awareness of their interrelatedness with family, community, and the natural environment, capturing spiritual, social, and ecological dimensions of connectedness. Respondents indicate how much they agree with statements such as “I am aware that my life is connected to all of nature,” using response options ranging from Not at all to A lot. An adapted version, the Yuuyaraq/Way of the Human Being: Awareness of Connectedness measure, was developed for Yup’ik Alaska Native youth as part of the Qungasvik (Tools for Life) suicide prevention program. This 11-item version was adapted using community-based participatory methods with Yup’ik elders, leaders, and youth to ensure cultural and linguistic equivalence. Items were rewritten for clarity and age appropriateness and analyzed using item response theory (IRT) to improve measurement precision. Both the original and adapted forms assess awareness of how an individual’s wellbeing is interrelated with that of others and the environment, emphasizing connectedness as a culturally specific protective factor.

The Benevolent Childhood Experiences (BCEs) measure is a 10-item checklist designed to assess the presence of positive and supportive experiences in early life among individuals exposed to adversity. Each item is answered with a Yes/No response, reflecting whether the participant experienced specific protective factors during childhood, such as having at least one safe caregiver, enjoyable school experiences, or opportunities for fun. The measure aims to capture resilience-promoting experiences that may buffer the effects of early adversity. A total score is calculated by summing all “Yes” responses, with possible scores ranging from 0 to 10. Higher scores indicate a greater number of protective childhood experiences.