MR topic 6

what is measurement in market research

assigning numbers to characteristics (attitudes, preferences) according to rules

do we measure consumers directly

no - we measure their perceptions, attitudes, and behaviours

what is scaling?

creating a continuum (scale) to position objects (rating from 1-5)

what are the 4 primary scales?

• nominal

• ordinal

• interval

• ratio

what is a nominal scale?

a classification/labelling scale with no numerical meaning

an example of a nominal scale

choosing favourite brands

what statistics can be used with nominal data

percentages

frequencies

mode

what is an ordinal scale?

a ranking scale showing order but not size of differences

example of ordinal scale

ranking brands from most to least preferred

key limitation of ordinal scale

cannot measure how much difference exists between ranks

what is an interval scale?

a scale with equal distances between values but no true zero

example of interval scale

rating satisfaction from 1-5

what statistics can be used with interval data?

• mean

• standard deviation

• correlation

what is a ratio scale

a scale with a true zero allowing full comparison

examples of ratio scale

• income

• age

• spending

• sales

why is ratio scale the highest level?

it allows all statistical operations

what is a comparative scale?

respondents compare objects directly

example of comparative question

do you prefer Coke or Pepsi?

what is a non-comparative scale?

respondents evaluate one object at a time

what is paired comparison?

choosing between two options at a time

advantage of paired comparison

simple and easy for respondents

what is rank order scaling

ranking multiple items from best to worst

what type of data does rank order produce?

ordinal data

what is constant sum scaling?

distributing a fixed number of points across options

what does constant sum show

relative importance of attributes

what is a continuous rating scale?

marking a point on a line between the two extremes

example of continuous rating system

WORST —————- BEST

what are itemized rating scales?

scales with labelled response categories

what is a Likert scale?

measures agreement with statements

typical Likert scale format

1 (strongly disagree) —> 5 (strongly agree)

what is a systematic differential scale?

a scale with opposite adjectives at each end

how many scale categories are recommended?

typically 5-9

what is a balanced scale?

equal positive and negative options

odd vs even number of categories

ODD = includes neutral

EVEN = forces a choice

forced vs non-forced scale

FORCED = no “no opinion” option

NON-FORCED = includes “don’t know”

what are types of scale descriptions?

• verbal

• numerical

• pictoral

what does physical form of scale refer to?

layout (horizontal, vertical, sliders etc)

what is generalisability?

ability to apply results to a wider population

Likert scale = what type of scaling?

non-comparative, itemised rating, interval scale

ranking brands = what scale?

ordinal scale + comparative technique

spending money question = what scale?

ratio scale