Measurement Scales Paper

Measurement Scales Paper

Measurement in Analysis can take on many forms, but in this case, these come in the form of questionnaires. A questionnaire when not done correctly may not be able to obtain the information in which the corporation may be seeking. There are in general four categories that these fall into. Categorically, these include Nominal, Ordinal, Interval and Ratio Numbers. The essential goal of this author is to explain to the utmost of authority of how these fit into questionnaires.

Attitude can play a part in the variables that make up these types of scales: from Nominal to Ratio. The general attitude scale will involve measurement in the same aspect of taking someone’s temperature or providing distance between places.

Nominal- In a Nominal Scale, objects are assigned to mutually exclusive, labeled categories, but there are no necessary relationships among categories (Aakar, Kumar and Day, 2007). In other words, there is no spacing or ordering implied (Aakar, Kumar and Day, 2007). If one entity is assigned the same number as another, they are considered identical with respect to a nominal variable (Aakar, Kumar and Day, 2007). Well known examples often used in questionnaires such as this include: Geographic location, Marital Status and Sex (aka Gender specification). The lowest measurement level used from a statistical point of view, these are non-parametric groups. Due to the fact that qualitative information is obtained from a nominal scale, names are only used. Some general examples of nominal questions include: Race: Caucasian, African/American, Latino; Hair Color: Blonde, Brown, Red, Black or Gray. Another example would be the number of auto dealerships within a given state and or county.

Ordin...

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...magnitude scaling of this type. It is the job of the researcher to be sure the respondent have the competence to make these proportional judgements, which means that respondents must be allowed to practice before attempting actual research questions (Aakar, Kumar and Day, 2007).

Measurement Scales in research can play a significant part in determining data variables and how these fit into questionnaires to obtain the right sort of information. Nominal, Ordinal, Interval and Ratio are just a few examples of measurement which have been mentioned.

Works Cited

Aakar, D.A., Kumar, V., & Day, G.S. (2007). Marketing Research 9th Ed.. Retrieved from http://ecampus.phoenix.edu University of Phoenix e Book Collection.

San Francisco University . (2011). Scales of Measurement . Retrieved from http://www.stat.sfu.ca/~cschwarz/Stat-301/Handouts/node5.html 17 July 2011.