McGill Quality of Life Questionnaire – MQOL
Measures multidimensional quality of life in patients with life-threatening illnesses, covering physical, psychological, existential, and social domains.
Scale Development & Technical Details
Scale Overview
The McGill Quality of Life Questionnaire – MQOL was developed by Robin S. Cohen, Balfour M. Mount (1995). It is designed to measure Quality of Life in Palliative Care. The scale is intended for use with Adults with advanced or life-threatening illness.
Scale Structure
This instrument consists of 17 items organized into 5 factors/subscales: Overall Quality of Life, Physical Symptoms, Psychological Symptoms, Existential Well-being, Social Support.
| Factor / Subscale | Items | N |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Quality of Life | 1 | 1 |
| Physical Symptoms | 2,3,4,5 | 4 |
| Psychological Symptoms | 6,7,8,9 | 4 |
| Existential Well-being | 10,11,12,13,14,15 | 6 |
| Social Support | 16,17 | 2 |
Response Format
Respondents rate each item using a custom response format.
Response anchors: 0 = 0, 1 = 1, 2 = 2, 3 = 3, 4 = 4, 5 = 5, 6 = 6, 7 = 7, 8 = 8, 9 = 9, 10 = 10.
The scale includes 8 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 10. Interpretation guidelines:
- Low Quality of Life: 0 – 3
- Moderate Quality of Life: 4 – 7
- High Quality of Life: 8 – 10
Psychometric Properties
Internal Consistency: The scale has demonstrated good to excellent internal consistency with reported Cronbach’s alpha values of Cronbach's alpha ranges from 0.70 to 0.85 across subscales.
Administration
The scale is self-administered and typically takes approximately 5 minutes to complete. It can be administered individually or in group settings. No special training is required for administration.