Levels of Measurement

Vocabulary flashcards covering the four levels of measurement: Nominal, Ordinal, Interval, and Ratio, including definitions and specific examples from the lecture.

Nominal

The adjective form of the word “NAME”, consisting of names, categories, or labels; it is QUALITATIVE type data like words or phrases.

Examples of Nominal Data

Eye color, hair color, gender, ethnicity, yes/no, religious preference, and political affiliation.

Ordinal

The adjective form of the word “ORDER” representing QUALITITATIVE type data with categories that have a sense of order, sometimes based on the researcher’s interpretation.

Examples of Ordinal Data

Types of college degrees (Associate, Bachelors, Masters, Doctorate), judging contests (1st place, 2nd place, 3rd place), Movie Ratings (G, PG, PG-13, R, X), and Letter Grades (A, B, C, D, F).

Interval

QUANTITATIVE data involving ranking and order where the difference (addition/subtraction) between ranks can be calculated, but there is no “true” zero.

Interval Zero

At this level, ZERO is simply a placeholder that does not in any way imply none or nothing.

Examples of Interval Data

Temperature (where $0^{\circ}$ does not mean no temperature), IQ Scores, SAT Scores, and ACT Scores (where a score of $0$ does not mean no intelligence).

Ratio

QUANTITATIVE data that has a sense of ranking and order where data can be added, subtracted, multiplied, and divided, and features a true zero.

Ratio Zero

At this level, ZERO does mean none or nothing.

Examples of Ratio Data

Salary ($0$ salary means working for nothing), Minutes ($0$ minutes means no time remains), Height, and Weight.