What it measures
KINDL measures health-related quality of life, meaning how children feel about different parts of their lives. Its 24 statements cover six areas, with four statements each: physical wellbeing, emotional wellbeing, self-esteem, family, friends and school. Children say how often each statement applied in the last week, giving a score for each area plus an overall score.
Who it’s for
There are age-appropriate versions for young children (with an interviewer), primary-age children and teenagers, plus versions for parents to complete about their child. Schools and researchers use it to compare wellbeing across groups, to evaluate programmes, and to understand how health conditions affect daily life. It describes quality of life and is not a diagnostic tool.
SAMPLE QUESTION
In the last week, how often did you feel good about yourself?
Never · Seldom · Sometimes · Often · All the time
Paraphrased example for illustration. The official questionnaires and manual are free from the KINDL website.
How it’s scored
Each statement is answered on a five-point scale from never to all the time, scored 1 to 5, with negatively worded statements reversed. Item scores are averaged within each of the six areas and for the whole questionnaire, then converted to a 0 to 100 scale, where higher scores mean better quality of life. There are no fixed cut-offs: compare scores with published reference data, between groups, or over time.
Validation and source
The questionnaire was developed in Germany by Ulrike Ravens-Sieberer and Monika Bullinger, and the revised KINDL-R was published in 1998. It has been used in large population studies, including Germany's national child and adolescent health survey (KiGGS) and the BELLA mental health study, and has been translated and tested in many countries. Studies generally report acceptable to good reliability for the total score, with some subscales weaker in certain age groups. The developers describe KINDL-R as fully open access, with all language versions free to download.
WHERE YOUHQ FITS
Validated scales measure. youHQ helps you act on what they show.
KINDL gives you a rounded picture of children's quality of life across home, friendships and school. That picture can change from week to week. youHQ gives pupils a quick daily check-in on how they're feeling, so staff can spot changes as they happen. Use KINDL to measure the bigger picture, and youHQ to know which pupils need support right now.
Frequently asked questions
Is KINDL free to use?
Yes. The developers describe the revised KINDL-R as fully open access, and the questionnaires and manual can be downloaded from the KINDL website in many languages.
Which KINDL version should we use?
Choose by age: there are versions for young children, primary-age children and teenagers, plus parent versions. The KINDL website lists the age range for each.
What is a good KINDL score?
There is no pass mark. Scores run from 0 to 100, with higher meaning better quality of life. Compare results with published reference data, between groups, or over time.