Revised Study Process Questionnaire
R-SPQ-2FPermission: Free for research use. Free for non-commercial academic research, with no licence fee. Cite the original publication.
A 20-item instrument measuring two approaches to learning in tertiary students: Deep Approach (driven by intrinsic interest; intention to understand) and Surface Approach (driven by fear of failure; intention to reproduce). Each approach decomposes into Motive and Strategy subscales (5 items each), yielding four 5-item subscales in total.
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Reliability & validation
Subscales
Response anchors
This item is never or only rarely true of me · This item is sometimes true of me · This item is true of me about half the time · This item is frequently true of me · This item is always or almost always true of me
Known limitations
Component subscales (Deep Motive, Deep Strategy, Surface Motive, Surface Strategy) have modest internal consistency because of their brevity; main-factor scores (Deep, Surface) are more robust. Validated originally with Hong Kong undergraduates; invariance across cultures has been tested but is not universal, so cite a matching validation for your sample.
Original citation
Biggs, J., Kember, D., & Leung, D. Y. P. (2001). The revised two-factor Study Process Questionnaire: R-SPQ-2F. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 71(1), 133-149.
https://doi.org/10.1348/000709901158433Questions researchers ask
What does the R-SPQ-2F measure?
A 20-item instrument measuring two approaches to learning in tertiary students: Deep Approach (driven by intrinsic interest; intention to understand) and Surface Approach (driven by fear of failure; intention to reproduce). Each approach decomposes into Motive and Strategy subscales (5 items each), yielding four 5-item…
How many items does the R-SPQ-2F have?
The Revised Study Process Questionnaire (R-SPQ-2F) has 20 items across 6 subscales: Deep Approach, Surface Approach, Deep Motive, Deep Strategy, Surface Motive, Surface Strategy.
Is the R-SPQ-2F free to use?
The R-SPQ-2F is free to use for non-commercial academic research. You don't need to pay a license fee, but you should always cite the original publication.
Is the R-SPQ-2F reliable?
Validation studies report Cronbach's α of 0.57–0.73. See the reliability section for the population studied and full statistics.
Who developed the R-SPQ-2F, and how do I cite it?
Biggs, J., Kember, D., & Leung, D. Y. P. (2001). The revised two-factor Study Process Questionnaire: R-SPQ-2F. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 71(1), 133-149. https://doi.org/10.1348/000709901158433
Related scales
Library entry verified September 2026. Metadata is provided for reference; item wording is available inside Folio Surveyor, subject to each instrument's licensing.