Business and marketing concepts can often be measured in more than one way
Measurement
The process of describing some property of a phenomenon, usually by assigning numbers in a reliable and valid way
Concept
A generalized idea that represents something of meaning
Operationalization
The process of identifying scale devices that correspond to properties of a concept involved in a research process
Scale
A device providing a range of values that correspond to different characteristics or amounts of a characteristic exhibited in observing a concept
Correspondence Rules
Indicate the way that a certain value on a scale corresponds to some true value of a concept
Variable
Anything that varies or changes from one instance to another; can exhibit differences in value, usually in magnitude or strength, or in direction
Construct
A term used to refer to concepts measured with multiple variables
Nominal Scales
Represent the most elementary level of measurement in which values are assigned to an object for identification or classification purposes only
Ordinal Scales
Ranking scales allowing things to be arranged based on how much of some concept they possess
Interval Scales
Scales that have both nominal and ordinal properties, but that also capture information about differences in quantities of a concept from one observation to the next
Ratio Scales
Represent the highest form of measurement in that they have all the properties of interval scales with the additional attribute of representing absolute quantities; characterized by meaningful absolute zero
Ratio Scales
Represent the highest form of measurement in that they have all the properties of interval scales with the additional attribute of representing absolute quantities; characterized by meaningful absolute zero
Nominal, Ordinal, Interval, and Ratio Scales Provide Different Information
Facts About the Four Levels of Scales
Nominal
Ordinal
Interval
Ratio
Discrete Measures
Measures that take on only one of a finite number of values
Discrete measures are most often used to represent a classificatory variable, do not represent the intensity of measures, and the central tendency is best captured by the mode
Continuous Measures
Measures that reflect the intensity of a concept by assigning values that can take on any value along some scale range
Ratio measures are continuous measures, and marketing researchers generally treat interval scales with five or more categories as continuous
Errors in judgment can be made when interval measures are treated as ratios, as an attitude of 0 means nothing as attitude only has meaning in a relative sense
The means and standard deviation may be calculated from continuous data, and using the actual quantities from arithmetic operations is permissible with ratio scales
Attribute
A single characteristic or fundamental feature of an object, person, situation, or issue
Index Measure
An index that assigns a value based on how much of the concept being measured is associated with an observation, often formed by putting several variables together
Composite Measures
Assign a value to an observation based on a mathematical derivation of multiple variables
Summated Scale
A scale created by simply summing (adding together) the response to each item making up the composite measure
Reverse Coding
Means that the value assigned for a response is treated oppositely from the other items
Reliability is an indicator of a measure's internal consistency, and a measure is reliable when different attempts at measuring something converge on the same result
Internal Consistency
Represents a measure's homogeneity or the extent to which each indicator of a concept converges on some common meaning
Split-half Method
A method for assessing internal consistency by checking the results of one-half of a set of scaled items against the results from the other half
Coefficient Alpha (α)
The most commonly applied estimate of a multiple item scale's reliability, representing the average of all possible split-half reliabilities for a construct
Test-retest Method
Administering the same scale or measure to the same respondents at two separate points in time to test for stability
Reliability is a necessary but insufficient condition for validity, as a reliable scale may not be valid, and a reliable but invalid instrument will yield consistently inaccurate results
Good measures should be both precise (i.e., reliable) and accurate (i.e., valid), and validity is the accuracy of a measure or the extent to which a score truthfully represents a concept
Reliability
The degree to which measures are free from random error and therefore yield consistent results
Validity
The accuracy of a measure or the extent to which a score truthfully represents a concept
A reliable but invalid instrument will yield consistently inaccurate results
Good measures should be both precise (i.e., reliable) and accurate (i.e., valid)
Face (Content) Validity
A scale's content logically appears to reflect what was intended to be measured
Criterion Validity
The ability of a measure to correlate with other standard measures of similar constructs or established criteria
Construct Validity
Exists when a measure reliably measures and truthfully represents a unique concept; consists of several components including face validity, convergent validity, criterion validity, and discriminant validity