13-1

Chapter 13

Measurement
Scales

McGraw-Hill/Irwin © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., All Rights Reserved.

 13-2

Learning Objectives

Understand…
• nature of attitudes and their relationship to
behavior
• critical decisions involved in selecting an
appropriate measurement scale
• characteristics and use of rating, ranking,
sorting, and other preference scales
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Exhibit 13-1
The Scaling Process
 13-4

Nature of Attitudes

I think oatmeal is healthier

Cognitive
than corn flakes for breakfast.

Affective I hate corn flakes.

I intend to eat more oatmeal

Conative
for breakfast.
 13-5

Improving the Predictability

of Attitudes

Specific

Multiple
Multiple
measures
measures Strong
Strong

Factors
Factors
Reference
Reference
groups Direct
Direct
groups

Basis
 13-6

Selecting a
Measurement Scale

Research objectives Response Types

Number of
Data properties
dimensions

Balanced or Forced or unforced

unbalanced choices

Number of
Rater errors
scale points
 13-7

Response Types

Rating
Ratingscale
scale

Ranking
Rankingscale
scale

Categorization
Categorization

Sorting
Sorting
 13-8

Number of Dimensions

Unidimensional

Multi-dimensional
 13-9

Balanced or Unbalanced

How good an actress is Julia Roberts?

 Very bad  Poor

 Bad  Fair
 Neither good nor bad  Good
 Good  Very good
 Very good  Excellent
 13-10

Forced or
Unforced Choices

How good an actress is Julia Roberts?

 Very bad  Very bad

 Bad  Bad
 Neither good nor bad  Neither good nor bad
 Good  Good
 Very good  Very good
 No opinion
 Don’t know
 13-11

Number of Scale Points

How good an actress is Julia Roberts?

 Very bad  Very bad

 Bad  Somewhat bad
 Neither good nor bad  A little bad
 Good  Neither good nor bad
 Very good  A little good
 Somewhat good
 Very good
 13-12

Rater Errors

•Adjust strength of
descriptive adjectives
•Space intermediate
Error of descriptive phrases
central tendency farther apart
•Provide smaller
Error of leniency differences
in meaning between
steps near the
ends of the scale
•Use more scale points
 13-13

Rater Errors

•Reverse order of
Primacy Effect
alternatives periodically
Recency Effect
 13-14

Dealing with Halo Effects

•Rate one trait at a time

•Reveal one trait

Halo Effects per page
•Reverse anchors
periodically
 13-15

Simple Category Scale

I plan to purchase a MindWriter laptop in the

12 months.

Yes
No
 13-16

Multiple-Choice, Single
Response Scale

What newspaper do you read most often for

financial news?

East City Gazette

West City Tribune
Regional newspaper
National newspaper
Other (specify:_____________)
 13-17

Multiple-Choice, Multiple
Response Scale

What sources did you use when designing your new

home? Please check all that apply.

Online planning services

Magazines
Independent contractor/builder
Designer
Architect
Other (specify:_____________)
 13-18

Likert Scale

The Internet is superior to traditional libraries for

comprehensive searches.

Strongly disagree
Disagree
Neither agree nor disagree
Agree
Strongly agree
 13-19

Semantic Differential
 13-20

Exhibit 13-5
Adapting SD Scales
Convenience of Reaching the Store from Your Location

Nearby ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: Distant

Short time required to reach store ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: Long time required to reach store

Difficult drive ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: Easy Drive

Difficult to find parking place ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: Easy to find parking place

Convenient to other stores I shop ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: Inconvenient to other stores I shop

Products offered
Wide selection of different Limited selection of different
kinds of products ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: kinds of products
Fully stocked ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: Understocked

Undependable products ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: Dependable products

High quality ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: Low quality

Numerous brands ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: Few brands

Unknown brands ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: ___: Well-known brands
 13-21

Exhibit 13-7 SD Scale for

Analyzing Actor Candidates
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Exhibit 13-8 Graphic of

SD Analysis
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Numerical Scale
 13-24

Multiple Rating List Scales

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Stapel Scales
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Constant-Sum Scales
 13-27

Graphic Rating Scales

 13-28

Ranking Scales

• Paired-comparison
scale
• Forced ranking scale
• Comparative scale
 13-29

Paired-Comparison Scale
 13-30

Forced Ranking Scale

 13-31

Comparative Scale
 13-32

Sorting
 13-33

MindWriter Scaling

Likert Scale

The problem that prompted service/repair was resolved

Strongly Neither Agree Strongly

Disagree Disagree Nor Disagree Agree Agree
1 2 3 4 5

Numerical Scale (MindWriter’s Favorite)

To what extent are you satisfied that the problem that prompted service/repair was resolved?

Very Very
Dissatisfied Satisfied
1 2 3 4 5

Hybrid Expectation Scale

Resolution of the problem that prompted service/repair.

Met Few Met Some Met Most Met All Exceeded

Expectations Expectations Expectations Expectations Expectations
1 2 3 4 5
 13-34

Exhibit 13-13
Ideal Scalogram Pattern

Item
______________________________________________________

2 4 1 3 Participant
Score

X X X X 4
__ X X X 3
__ __ X X 2
__ __ __ X 1
__ __ __ __ 0

* X = agree; __ = disagree.
 13-35

Key Terms
• Attitude • Forced-choice rating
• Balanced rating scale scale
• Categorization • Forced ranking scale
• Comparative scale • Graphic rating scale
• Constant-sum scale • Halo effect
• Cumulative scale • Item analysis
• Error of central • Likert scale
tendency • Multidimensional scale
• Error of leniency
 13-36

Key Terms

• Multiple-choice, • Q-sort
multiple-response scale • Ranking scale
• Multiple-choice, single- • Rating scale
response scale • Scaling
• Multiple rating list • Scalogram analysis
• Numerical scale
• Semantic differential
• Paired-comparison
• Simple category scale
scale
 13-37

Key Terms

• Sorting • Unbalanced rating scale

• Stapel scale • Unforced-choice rating
• Summated rating scale scale
• Unidimensional scale