Scale

A scale may be defined as “any series of items which

is progressively arranged according to value or
magnitude into which an item can be placed according
to its quantification”

Types of scale
Nominal Scale

Ordinal Scale

Interval Scale

Ratio Scale
1
Nominal Scale
A scale in which the numbers or letters assigned to objects
serve as labels for identification or classification;

Ordinal Scale
A scale that arranges objects or alternatives according to
their magnitudes.

Interval Scale
A scale that not only arranges objects according to their
magnitudes but also distinguishes this ordered arrangements in
units of equal intervals.

Ratio Scale
A scale having absolute rather than relative quantities and
possessing an absolute zero when there is an absence of a given
attribute.
2
 7
Nomina
l

Show Place Win

9 2 7
Ordinal

Show Place Win

Interval 9 2 7

1 length 2 lengths

Win
Ratio
40 to 1 long short
Rs 5 pays Rs.200
3
Scales of Measurement
Basic Typical Measures of
Scale Comparisons Examples Average
Nominal Identity Male-female Mode
User-nonuser
Occupations
Uniform numbers

Ordinal Order Preference for brands Median

Social class
Hardness of minerals
Graded quality of lumber

Interval Comparison Temperature scale Mean

of intervals Grade point average
Attitude toward brands
Awareness of advertising

Ratio Comparison Units sold Geometric

of absolute Number of purchasers mean
magnitudes Probability of purchase Harmonic
Weight mean

4
Three Criteria For Good Measurement

Reliability

Validity

Sensitivity

5
Reliability
The degree to which measures are free from error and
therefore yield consistent results.

RELIABILITY

REPEATABILITY INTERNAL CONSISTENY

TEST RETEST EQUIVALENT FORMS SPLITTING HALVES

6
Validity
The ability of a scale or measuring instrument to
measure what is intended to be measured.

Three Basic Approaches To Deal With The Issue of

Validity
Content Validity : Professional agreement that a scale
logically appears to be accurately reflecting what was
intended to be measured.
Criterion Validity : The ability of some measure to
correlate with other measures of the same construct.

Construct Validity : The ability of a measure to confirm a

network of related hypotheses generated from a theory
based on concepts.
7
8

Low Reliability
Reliable but Not Valid
9
Reliability and Validity
10

on Target
Sensitivity
A measurement instrument’s ability to accurately
measure variability in stimuli or responses.

11
 Attitude Measurement
Attitude
A mental and neural state of readiness, organised
through experience, exerting a directive or dynamic
influence upon the individual’s response to all objects and
situations with which it is related.

Allport, 1935

A mental state used by individuals to structure the

way they perceive the environment and guide the way
they respond to it

12
An attitude is a psychological tendency that is expressed
by evaluating a particular entity with some degree of
favour or disfavour
Eagly & Chaiken, 1998

A learned predisposition to respond to an attitude

object in a consistently favourable or unfavourable way

Components of Attitude
Affective
Cognitive

Behavioral

13
 Affective

The feelings or emotions toward an object

14
 Cognitive

Represents one’s awareness and

knowledge about an object.

15
 Behavioral
The component of attitude that reflects buying
intentions and behavioral expectations. It reflects a
predisposition to action

Attitudes : Hypothetical Constructs

The term hypothetical construct is used to describe a
variable that is not directly observable, but is
measurable by an indirect means such as verbal
expression or overt behavior - attitudes are
considered to be such variables.

16
 Classification of attitude measurement
scales

Scaling Techniques

Comparitive Non Comparitive

sacles Scales

Paired
Paired Rank
Rank Constant
Constant Q-Sort
Q-Sort Itemised
comparisons order sum techniques Continuous
comparisons order sum techniques Rating
Rating
scales
scales

Semantic
Semantic
Likert
Likert Stapel
Stapel
differential
differential

17
Techniques For Measuring Attitudes

Ranking

Rating

Sorting

Choice

18
The Attitude Measuring Process
Ranking - Rank order preference

Ranking tasks require that the respondent rank order a

small number of activities, events or objects in overall
performance on the basis of some characteristic or
stimulus

Rating - Estimates magnitude of a characteristic

Rating asks the respondent to estimate the magnitude of
a characteristic, or quality, that an object possesses.
The respondent’s position on a scale(s) is where he or she
would rate an object

19
Sorting - Arrange or classify concept

Sorting might present the respondent with several

concepts typed on cards and require that the
respondent arrange the cards into a number of piles or
otherwise classify the concepts.

Choice - Selection of preferred alternative

Choice between two or more alternatives is another

type of attitude measurement - it is assumed that the
chosen object is preferred over the other

20
 Paired-Comparison Scales

A measurement technique that consists of presenting

the respondent with two objects and asking the
respondent to pick the preferred object. Two or more
objects may be presented, but comparisons are made in
pairs.

As the number of items increases, the number of

comparisons increases geometrically (n*(n -1)/2).

21
 Pair I

Pair II

Pair III

22
Constant sum scale

A measure of attitudes in which respondents are

asked to divide a constant sum to indicate the
relative importance of attributes.

e.g. Divide 100 points among each of the following

brands according to your preference.
Brand A
Brand B
Brand C

23
Method of Summated Ratings: The Likert Scale

An extremely popular means for measuring

attitudes. Respondents indicate their own
attitudes by checking how strongly they agree or
disagree with statements.

Response alternatives: “strongly agree”, “agree”,

“uncertain”, “disagree”, and “strongly disagree”.

24
Likert scale

Strongly Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly

disagree
agree (5) (4) (3) (2) (1)

e.g: Student Politics should be banned in

educational institutions.
Strongly agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly disagree
(5) (4) (3) (2) (1)

25
 strongly agree nor strongly
disagree disagree disagree agree agree
1. The bank offers courteous service. ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

2. The bank has a convenient location. ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

3. The bank has convenient hours. ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

4. The bank offers low interest rate loans. ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

26
Semantic Differential

A series of seven-point bipolar rating scales.

Bipolar adjectives, such as “good” and “bad”,
anchor both ends (or poles) of the scale.

Service is discourteous ___:___:___:___:___:___:___ Service is courteous

Location is convenient ___:___:___:___:___:___:___ Location is inconvenient
Hours are convenient ___:___:___:___:___:___:___ Hours are inconvenient
Loan interest rates are high ___:___:___:___:___:___:___ Loan interest rates are low

27
Numerical scales

Numerical scales have numbers as response

options, rather than “semantic space’ or verbal
descriptions, to identify categories (response
positions).
Service is discourteous ___:___:___:___:___:___:___ Service is courteous
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Location is inconvenient ___:___:___:___:___:___:___ Location is convenient
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Hours are inconvenient ___:___:___:___:___:___:___ Hours are convenient
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Loan interest rates are high ___:___:___:___:___:___:___ Loan interest rates are low
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 28
Stapel Scale
Modern versions of the Stapel scale place a single
adjective as a substitute for the semantic
differential when it is difficult to create pairs of
bipolar adjectives.
e.g.A Stapel Scale for Measuring the image of Kalyan Silks
Kalyan Silks
+3
+2
+1
Wide Selection
-1
-2
-3
29
 Graphic Rating Scales

A measure of attitude consisting of a graphic

continuum that allows respondents to rate an object
by choosing any point on the continuum.
Please evaluate each quality in terms of how important it is to
you personally by marking at the position on the horizontal line
that most reflects your feelings:

not very
important important
Courteous service _______________________________________
Convenient location _______________________________________
Convenient hours _______________________________________
Low interest rate loans _______________________________________
30
 Graphic Rating Scales
Graphic rating scale stressing pictorial visual
communications

Very Good Very Poor

1 2 3
31
32
Thank
you
33