Attitudes

Expressions of inner feelings that reflect whether a

person is favorably or unfavorably predisposed to
some object -- a brand, a brand name, a service, a
service provider, a retail store, a company, an
advertisement, in essence, any marketing stimuli.
Opinions
A large amount of questions in marketing research are
designed to measure attitudes
Marketing managers want to understand consumers
attitudes in order to influence their behavior

Three Components of Attitudes

The ABCs of attitudes:
The Affective Component (based on feelings or

overall evaluation) Feelings of like or dislike

The Behavioral Component (likely action
toward object; e.g. from a consumer behavior
point of view, the consumers intention to buy a
product) Intentions to behave
The Cognitive Component (based on beliefs;
what you think about a marketing stimulus)

Information possessed

Measurement
To collect data, you need to have something to measure

Measurement is the process of

assigning numbers or scores to
characteristics or attributes of the
objects or people people of interest

Variables
When we measure the attributes of an object, we
obtain a value that varies between objects.
For example consider the people in this class as
objects and their height as the attribute
The attribute height varies between objects, hence
attributes are more collectively known as variables
Variables can be measured on four different scales

Nominal Scale
Classifies data according to a
category only.
E.g., which color people select.
Colors differ qualitatively not
quantitatively.
A number could be assigned to
each color, but it would not have
any value.
The number serves only to
identify the color.
No assumptions are made that
any color has more or less value
than any other color.

Nominal Scale
Assign subjects to groups or categories
Mutually exclusive
Collectively exhaustive

No order or distance relationship

No arithmetic origin
Only count numbers in categories
Only present percentages of categories
Chi-square most often used test of statistical
significance

Other Examples
Sex

Social status

Marital status

Days of the week (months)

Geographic location

Patrons per hour

Ethnic Group

Types of restaurants

Brand choice

Religion

Job Type: Executive, Technical, Clerical

Coded as

Coded as

Nominal Scale
Which of the following media influences your purchasing
decisions the most?
1 Television
2 Radio
3 Newspapers
4 Magazines

Ordinal Scale
classifies nominal data
according to some order or rank
E.g. names ordered
alphabetically
With ordinal data, it is fair to
say that one response is greater
or less than another.
E.g. if people were asked to
rate the hotness of 3 chili
peppers, a scale of "hot",
"hotter" and "hottest" could be
used. Values of "1" for "hot",
"2" for "hotter" and "3" for
"hottest" could be assigned.

The gap between the

items is unspecified.

Ordinal Scale
Can include opinion
and preference scales
Median but not mean
No unique, arithmetic
origin
Means items cannot
be added
In marketing research
practice, ordinal scale
variables are often
treated as interval scale
variables

Ordinal Scale
Rank Player

Avg Pts

1.Woods

16.53

2. Els

9.26

3. Singh

9.19

4.Love-III

7.96

5. Furyk

7.57

6. Weir

7.46

Likert scales, rank on a

scale of 1..5 your degree
of satisfaction

7.Toms

5.92

Womens dress sizes

8.Perry

5.68

9. Harrington

5.37

10. Goosen

5.18

As of Oct 19, 2003

Examples
GPA
Small medium large
Quality

Please rank the news programs offered in following four

networks based on your preference.(1 for most preferred, 4
for least preferred).
_____ CTV
_____ Global
_____ A Channel
_____ CBC

Interval Scale
assumes that the measurements are made in
equal units.
i.e. gaps between whole numbers on the scale
are equal.
e.g. Fahrenheit and Celsius temperature scales
an interval scale does not have to have a true
zero. e.g. A temperature of "zero" does not
mean that there is no temperature...it is just an
arbitrary zero point.
Permissible statistics: count/frequencies,
mode, median, mean, standard deviation

Interval Scale
How likely are you going to buy a new automobile within the
next six months? (Please check the most appropriate category)
Definitely will not buy
Probably will not buy
May or may not buy
Probably will buy
Definitely will buy

___
___
___
___
___

1
2
3
4
5

Ratio Scale
similar to interval scales except that
the ratio scale has a true zero value.
e.g. the time something takes
allows you to compare differences
between numbers.
Permits full arithmetic operation.
If a train journey takes 2 hr and 35
min, then this is half as long as a
journey which takes 5 hr and 10 min.

Ratio Scale
Indicates actual amount of variable
Shows magnitude of differences between points on scale
Shows proportions of differences

All statistical techniques useable

Most powerful with most meaningful answers
Allows comparisons of absolute magnitudes

Examples
height, weight, age,
Length
time
Income
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0

Market share
1.What is your annual income
before taxes? $ _______
2. How far is your workplace
from home?

_______ miles

Primary Scales of Measurement

Nominal

Ordinal

Interval

Ratio

Numbers
Assigned to
Runners

81

Rank Order of
Winners

Performance
Rating on a 0 to
10 Scale
Time to Finish in
Seconds

Third
Place

Second
Place

First
Place

8.2

9.1

9.6

15.2

14.1

13.4

Comparison of Measurement Scales

Label

Order Distance Origin

Nominal scale

Yes

No

No

No

Ordinal scale

Yes

Yes

No

No

Interval scale

Yes

Yes

Yes

No

Ratio scale

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Use of Measurement Scales

Nominal
Used to categorize objects

Ordinal
Used to define ordered relationships

Interval
Used to rank objects such that the magnitude of the difference
between two objects can be determined

Ratio
Same as interval scale but has an absolute zero point

Always use the most powerful scale possible

Adding Sophistication To Scales
Concept: Desire to watch Star Wars movies
If a Star Wars movie is on television will you watch it?
Yes _____ No _____
How likely are you to watch a Star Wars movie shown
on television?
Very Likely ____
Likely ____ Indifferent ___
Unlikely _____ Very Unlikely _____

Another way to describe variables

Qualitative variables: have a nominal scale of
measurement.
Continuous variables: have an Ordinal, interval,
or ratio variables scale of measurement.
Quantitative variables: have an interval scale of
measurement.
Categorical variables: have a nominal or ordinal
scale of measurement.

Practice describing variables

Q: What kind of variable is educational
attainment, and what scale is it measured in?
A: Education is measured in number of years of
schooling, and is therefore a discrete quantitative
variable measured on an interval scale. (Or is it?)
How could education be measure using
A nominal scale
An ordinal scale

A Classification of Scaling Techniques

SCALING TECHNIQUES

Comparative
Scales

Paired
Comparison

Rank
Order

Constant
Sum

Non-Comparative
Scales

Others

Likert

Continuous
Rating
Scales

Semantic
Differential

Itemized
Rating
Scales

Stapel

Types of Scaling Techniques

COMPARATIVE

SCALES

Involve the respondent directly comparing stimulus objects.

e.g. How does Pepsi compare with Coke on sweetness
NONCOMPARATIVE

SCALES

Respondent scales each stimulus object independently of

other objects
e.g. How would you rate the sweetness of Pepsi on a scale of 1
to 10

Paired Comparison Items

If we have brands A, B, C and D, we would hav

respondents compare
A and B
A and C
A and D
B and C
B and D
C and D
UsuallylimitedtoN<15

COMPARATIVE SCALES
Paired Comparison
Please indicate which of the following airlines you prefer
by circling your more preferred airline in each pair:
Air Canada
Air Transat
Zip
WestJet
Air Canada
Zip

WestJet
Air Canada
WestJet
Air Transat
Zip
Air Transat

COMPARATIVE SCALES
Constant Sum Scales
Allocate a total of 100 points among the following softdrinks depending on how favorable you feel toward each;
the more highly you think of each soft-drink, the more
points you should allocate to it. (Please check that the
allocated points add to 100.)
Coca-Cola

_____

points

7-Up

_____

points

Dr. Pepper

_____

points

Tab

_____

points

Pepsi-Cola

_____

points

100 points

Constant Sum Scale

Please divide 100 points among the following characteristics
so the division reflects the relative importance of each
characteristic to you in the selection of a bank
Hours of service

________________

Friendliness

_______________

Distance from home

________________

Investment vehicles

________________

Parking facilities

__________________

COMPARATIVE SCALES
Rank-Order Scales
Rank the following soft-drinks from 1 (best) to 5 (worst)
according to your taste preference:
Coca-Cola

_____

7-Up

_____

Dr. Pepper

_____

Pepsi-Cola

_____

Mountain Dew

_____

Topandbottomrankchoicesareeasy
Middleranksareusuallymostdifficult

Comparative Scales
Rank Order Scale
Indicate your preferred type of music with a 1,
your second favorite with a 2, and so on for each
type of music:
____
____
____
____
____

Heavy Metal
Alternative
Urban Contemporary
Classical
Country

Instructions
Rank the various brands of toothpaste in order of preference. Begin by picking
out the one brand that you like most and assign it a number 1. Then find the
second most preferred- brand and assign it a number 2. Continue this procedure
until you have ranked all the brands of toothpaste in order of preference. The least
preferred brand should be assigned a a rank of 10. No two brands should receive
the same rank number. The criterion of preference is entirely up to you. There is
no right or wrong answer. Just try to be consistent.
Brand
Rank Order
1. Crest
2. Colgate
3. Aim
4. Mentadent
5. Macleans
6. Ultra Brite
7. Close Up
8. Pepsodent
9. Plus White

10. Stripe

COMPARATIVE SCALES
Compared to Chevrolet, Ford is:
less
innovative

about the
same

more
innovative

Non comparative scale

Continuous scale

How would you rate Marketing Research to

other courses this term

The worst

10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100

The Best

Itemized Rating Scales

Semantic
Differential
Scale

The Likert scale

Staple scale

Non-Comparative Scales

Non-Comparative Scales
Semantic Differential Scale
Here are a number of statements that could be used to describe
K-Mart. For each statement tick ( X ) the box that best
describes your feelings about K-Mart.
Modern Store

Old- fashioned store

Low prices

High prices

Unfriendly staff

Friendly staff

Narrow product range

Wide product range

Sophisticated customers

Unsophisticated customers

Semantic Differential Scale

Snake Diagram
X

Modern Store

Old- fashioned store

X

Low prices
X

Friendly staff

High prices
Unfriendly staff

Wide product range

Narrow product range

Sophisticated customers

Unsophisticated customers

Key :
Sears
X

K-Mart

Itemised Rating Scales

Semantic differential

Old
X
Fashioned 1

Modern

X
4

X
3

Cheap
1
Friendly
service

5
Expensive

5
5

Unfriendly
service

Itemised Rating Scales

Likert scale
Strongly
agree
Market research is the most
interesting subject known to
man

disagree

Neither
agree nor
disagree
3

agree

Strongly
agree
5

Itemised Rating Scales

The Likert scale

AGREEMENT

Strongly Agree
Agree
Undecided
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
Agree Very Strongly
Agree Strongly
Agree
Disagree
Disagree Strongly
Disagree Very Strongly

Agree Strongly
Agree Moderately
Agree Slightly
Disagree Slightly
Disagree Moderately
Disagree Strongly

Yes
No

Agree
Disagree

Completely Agree
Mostly Agree
Slightly Agree
Slightly Disagree
Mostly Disagree
Completely
Disagree

Agree
Undecided
Disagree

Disagree Strongly
Disagree
Tend to Disagree
Tend to Agree
Agree
Agree Strongly

FREQUENCY

Very Frequently
Frequently
Occasionally
Rarely
Very Rarely
Never

Always
Very Frequently
Occasionally
Rarely
Very Rarely
Never

Always
Usually
About Half the Time
Seldom
Never

A Great Deal
Much
Somewhat
Little
Never

Often
Sometimes
Seldom
Never

Always
Very Often
Sometimes
Rarely
Never

Almost Always
To a Considerable Degree
Occasionally
Seldom

IMPORTANCE
Very Important
Important
Moderately Important
Of Little Importance
Unimportant

Very Important
Moderately Important
Unimportant

QUALITY
Very Good
Good
Barely Acceptable
Poor
Very Poor

Extremely Poor
Below Average
Average
Above Average
Excellent

Good
Fair
Poor

LIKELIHOOD

Like Me
Unlike Me

To a Great Extent
Somewhat
Very Little
Not at All

True
False

Definitely
Very Probably
Probably
Possibly
Probably Not
Very Probably Not

Almost Always True

Usually True
Often True
Occasionally True
Sometimes But Infrequently True
Usually Not True
Almost Never True

True of Myself
Mostly True of Myself
About Halfway True of Myself
Slightly True Of Myself
Not at All True of Myself

Itemised Rating Scales

Staple scale
+5

+5

+4

+4

+3

+3

+2

+2

+1

+1

High quality

Poor service

-1

-1

-2

-2

-3

-3

-4

-4

-5

-5

A Stapel Scale for Measuring a Stores Image

Select a plus number for words that you think describe the store
accurately. The more accurately you think the work describes the
store, the larger the plus number you should choose. Select a
minus number for words you think do not describe the store
accurately. The less accurately you think the word describes the
store, the larger the minus number you should choose, therefore,
you can select any number from +3 for words that you think are
very accurate all the way to -3 for words that you think are very
inaccurate.
+3
+2
+1
Wide Selection
-1
-2
-3

Staple Scale
The following questions concern your ratings of several suppliers that provide
products for use in your store.

XYZ
Poor Product
Selection

-5

-4

-3

-2

-1

Costly Products

-5

-4

-3

-2

-1

Fast Service

-5

-4

-3

-2

-1

High Quality
Products

-5

-4

-3

-2

-1

Innovative

-5

-4

-3

-2

-1

Some Basic Considerations

When Selecting a Scale
Selecting a Rating, Ranking,
Sorting, or Purchase Intent
Scale

Number of Categories

Forced Versus Non-forced

Choice

Odd or Even Number of

Scale Categories

Balanced Versus Nonbalanced Alternatives

Odd versus even

if neutral responses likely, use odd number

Odd

Even

Strongly Agree

_____ Strongly Agree_____

Agree

_____ Agree

_____

Neutral

_____ Disagree

_____

Disagree

_____ Strongly disagree___

Strongly disagree_____

Balanced vs. Unbalanced

Balanced

Unbalanced

Very good

______

Excellent

______

Good

______

Very Good

______

Fair

______

Good

______

Poor

______

Fair

______

Very Poor

______

Poor

______

Balanced and Unbalanced Scales

Balanced Scale

Unbalanced Scale

JOVAN MUSK FOR MEN IS

JOVAN MUSK FOR MEN IS

Extremely good
Very good
Good
Bad
Very bad
Extremely bad

Extremely good
Very good
Somewhat Good
Good
Bad
Very bad

Forced vs. Unforced

Unforced

Forced
Extremely Reliable

___

Extremely Reliable

___

Very Reliable

___

Very Reliable

___

Somewhat Reliable

___

Somewhat Reliable

___

Somewhat Unreliable ___

Somewhat Unreliable ___

Very Unreliable

___

Very Unreliable

___

Extremely Unreliable

___

Extremely Unreliable

___

Dont know

___

Labeled vs. End Anchored

Labeled

End Anchored

Excellent

_____

Very Good

_____

Fair

_____

_____

Poor

_____

_____

Very Poor

_____

Excellent

Poor

_____
_____

_____

IntervalsMayNotReflecttheSemantic
MeaningoftheAdjectives

Excellent _____
Labeled

IntervalsAre
NotEqual

Excellent

_____

Very Good

_____

Very Good_____

Fair

_____

Fair

_____

Poor

_____

Poor

_____

Very Poor

_____

IntervalsAre
NotEqual

Very Poor _____

Number of Scale Points

5 Point
Excellent

_____

10 Point
Excellent
_____
_____________
_____________

_____

_____________
_____________

_____

_____________
_____________
_____________

_____
Poor

_____

_____________

Poor

_____________

Choosing the Appropriate Scale

Attitude
component

Itemized
category

Rank Constant
order sum

Likert

Semantic
differential

Knowledge
Awareness

Attribute beliefs

Attribute
importance

Overall
preferences

Specific
attributes

Affect or Liking

Action
intentions

A = Very appropriate, B = Sometimes appropriate

Characteristics of Good
Measurement Scales
1. Reliability
The degree to which a measure accurately captures an
individuals true outcome without error; Accuracy
synonymous with repetitive consistency
2. Validity
The degree to which a measure faithfully represents the
underlying concept; Fidelity
3. Sensitivity
The ability to discriminate meaningful differences
between attitudes. The more categories the more sensitive
(nut less reliable)
4. Generalizability
How easy is scale to administer and interpret

Validity and Reliability

If a measure is valid, then it is reliable
If it is not reliable, it can not be valid
If it is reliable, it may or may not be valid
Reliability can be more easily determined than
validity

Reliability and Validity

Neither Reliable
Nor Valid

Reliable But
Not Valid

Reliable
And Valid

Example of low validity, high

reliability
Scale is perfectly accurate, but is capturing the
wrong thing; for example, it measures
consumers interest in creative writing rather
than preference for kinds of stationery.

Example of modest validity, low

reliability
Scale genuinely measures consumers
interest in kinds of stationery, but poorly
worded items, sloppy administration, data
entry errors lead to random errors in data
Note that reliability sets an upper limit on
validity -- a measure with a lot of errors is
limited in how well it can capture a concept