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From alpha to omega: A practical solution to the pervasive problem of internal consistency estimation

Dunn, Thomas J., Baguley, Thom, Brunsden, Vivienne·2014·British Journal of Psychology

Abstract

Coefficient alpha is the most popular measure of reliability (and certainly of internal consistency reliability) reported in psychological research. This is noteworthy given the numerous deficiencies of coefficient alpha documented in the psychometric literature. This mismatch between theory and practice appears to arise partly because users of psychological scales are unfamiliar with the psychometric literature on coefficient alpha and partly because alternatives to alpha are not widely known. We present a brief review of the psychometric literature on coefficient alpha, followed by a practical alternative in the form of coefficient omega. To facilitate the shift from alpha to omega, we also present a brief guide to the calculation of point and interval estimates of omega using a free, open source software environment.

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Metadata

Authors
Dunn, T. J., Baguley, T., & Brunsden, V.
Venue
British Journal of Psychology
Publisher
Wiley
Published
2013-08-06
Volume
105
Issue
3
Pages
399-412
ISSN
  • 0007-1269 (ISSN-L)
  • 2044-8295
OpenAlex
W2075004202
Cited by
3,596
References
8
FWCI
65.74
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Funders
Economic and Social Research Council

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CoChat. (2026). Citation check: From alpha to omega: A practical solution to the pervasive problem of internal consistency estimation. https://app.cochat.ai/papers/10.1111/bjop.12046
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Dunn, T. J., Baguley, T., & Brunsden, V. (2014). From alpha to omega: A practical solution to the pervasive problem of internal consistency estimation. British Journal of Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjop.12046

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