World Health Organization Quality of Life Assessment – 100 Item Version (WHOQOL-100)
A multidimensional self-report instrument developed by the WHO to assess an individual's perception of their position in life in the context of their culture and value systems.
Scale Development & Technical Details
Scale Overview
The World Health Organization Quality of Life Assessment – 100 Item Version (WHOQOL-100) was developed by World Health Organization (WHO) (1995). It is designed to measure Quality of Life. The scale is intended for use with Adults.
Scale Structure
This instrument consists of 100 items organized into 7 factors/subscales: Physical Health, Psychological, Level of Independence, Social Relations, Environment, Spirituality/Religion/Personal beliefs, Overall Quality of Life and General Health.
| Factor / Subscale | Items | N |
|---|---|---|
| Physical Health | 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,40,56,57,83,86 | 12 |
| Psychological | 8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18,41,58,59,60,61,62,84,87,88 | 20 |
| Level of Independence | 19,20,21,22,23,42,43,63,89,90,91,92,93,94,95,96 | 16 |
| Social Relations | 24,25,26,44,45,64,65,66,67,68,80,82 | 12 |
| Environment | 27,28,29,30,31,32,33,34,35,36,37,38,39,46,47,48,49,50,51,52,69,70,71,72,73,74,75,76,77,78,79,85 | 32 |
| Spirituality/Religion/Personal beliefs | 97,98,99,100 | 4 |
| Overall Quality of Life and General Health | 53,54,55,81 | 4 |
Response Format
Respondents rate each item using a custom response format.
Response anchors: 1 = Not at all / Very dissatisfied / Very poor / Never, 2 = A little / Dissatisfied / Poor / Seldom, 3 = A moderate amount / Neither / Neither / Quite often, 4 = Very much / Satisfied / Good / Very often, 5 = An extreme amount / Very satisfied / Very good / Always.
The scale includes 30 reverse-scored items to reduce acquiescence bias.
Scoring
Items are scored by subscale, with each subscale sum representing a distinct dimension.
Total scores range from 0 to 100. Interpretation guidelines:
- Poor Quality of Life: 0 – 40
- Moderate Quality of Life: 41 – 60
- Good Quality of Life: 61 – 80
- Very Good Quality of Life: 81 – 100
Psychometric Properties
Internal Consistency: The scale has demonstrated good to excellent internal consistency with reported Cronbach’s alpha values of Cronbach's alpha > 0.70 for all domains.
Administration
The scale is self-administered and typically takes approximately 25 minutes to complete. It can be administered individually or in group settings. No special training is required for administration.