Research methodology week09

29 August 2005 MBA III (Research Methodology) Course Instructor: Dr. Aurangzeb Z. Khan 1

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

(Business Research Methods)

Week 9


Measurement and Scaling (1) In business research, measurement of variables is a

indispensable requirement

Problem – Defining what is to be measured, and how it is to be accurately and reliably measured

Some things (or concepts) which are inherently abstract in their nature (e.g. job satisfaction, employee morale, brand loyalty of consumers) are more difficult to measure than concepts which can be assigned numerical values (e.g. sales volume for employees X, Y and Z)


Measurement and Scaling (2) In order for a concept to have the quality of being

measurable, it must first be made operational

An operation definition may be defined as a definition that gives meaning to concept by specifying the activities or operations which are necessary in order to measure it

Example – A satisfied consumer will make at least five purchases of Product A from Shop T over a three-month period of time

Note that sometimes – depending on the context of the research study - it may be difficult to make operational definitions


Measurement and Scaling (3) A scale is basically a continuous spectrum or series of

categories and has been defined as any series of items that are arranged progressively according to value or magnitude, into which an item can be placed according to its quantification

Four popular scales in business research are:

– Nominal scales– Ordinal scales– Interval scales– Ratio scales


Measurement and Scaling (4) A nominal scale is the simplest of the four scale types

and in which the numbers or letters assigned to objects serve as labels for identification or classification

Example:

Males = 1, Females = 2 Sales Zone A = Islamabad, Sales Zone B = Rawalpindi Drink A = Pepsi Cola, Drink B = 7-Up, Drink C = Miranda


Measurement and Scaling (5) An ordinal scale is one that arranges objects or

alternatives according to their magnitude

Examples:

Career Opportunities = Moderate, Good, Excellent Investment Climate = Bad, inadequate, fair, good, very good Merit = A grade, B grade, C grade, D grade

A problem with ordinal scales is that the difference between categories on the scale is hard to quantify, I,e., excellent is better than good but how much is excellent better?


Measurement and Scaling (6) An interval scale is a scale that not only arranges objects

or alternatives according to their respective magnitudes, but also distinguishes this ordered arrangement in units of equal intervals (i.e. interval scales indicate order (as in ordinal scales) and also the distance in the order)

Examples: Consumer Price Index Temperature Scale in Fahrenheit

Interval scales allow comparisons of the differences of magnitude (e.g. of attitudes) but do not allow determinations of the actual strength of the magnitude


Measurement and Scaling (7) A ratio scale is a scale that possesses absolute rather

than relative qualities and has an absolute zero.

Examples: Money Weight Distance Temperature on the Kelvin Scale

Interval scales allow comparisons of the differences of magnitude (e.g. of attitudes) as well as determinations of the actual strength of the magnitude


Measurement and Scaling (8)

Type of Scale Numerical Operation Descriptive Statistics

Nominal Counting Frequency in each category, percentage in each category, mode

Ordinal Rank Ordering Median, range, percentile ranking

Interval Arithmetic Operations on Intervals between numbers

Mean, standard deviation, variance

Ratio Arithmetic Operations on actual quantities

Geometric mean, coefficient of variation


Index Measures If a concept is simple, it can be measured easily usually with

one question or observation

Example: To what extent do consumers of Product X like the product’s packaging material? (very much, somewhat, not at all)

If, however, the concept to be measured is complex and abstract, two or more questions or observations may be required in order to get accurate data

Example: The level of a salesperson’s motivation depends on (1) job satisfaction (2) workplace environment (3) family life

Indexes (or composite measures) are meant to deal with the issue of multidimensionalty (e.g. an index of social class may be the variables residence, occupation and education)


Criteria for Good Measurement (1) Reliability – Reliability is the degree to which

measurements are devoid of error and therefore in the position to yield consistent results, also over repeated attempts over time (ordinal measures always yield the same order, interval measurements always yield the same order and same distance between the measured items)

Validity – Validity is the ability of a scale or measuring instrument to measure what it is intended to measure (e.g. is absenteeism from work a valid measure of job satisfaction or are there other influences like a flu epidemic which is keeping employees from work)


Criteria for Good Measurement (2) Sensitivity – Sensitivity is the ability of a measurement

instrument to accurately measure variability in stimuli or responses (e.g. on a scale, the choices very strongly agree, strongly agree, agree, don’t agree offer more choices than a scale with just two choices - agree and don’t agree – and is thus more sensitive)


Attitude Measuring Attitude is a frequent undertaking in business

research

Attitude may be defined as an enduring disposition to consistently respond in a given manner to various aspects

Attitude has three dimensions:

AffectiveComponent

AffectiveComponent

CognitiveComponent

CognitiveComponent

BehaviouralComponent

BehaviouralComponent


Components of Attitude

Affective Component – Reflective of a person’s general feelings or emotions towards an object or subject (like, dislike, love, hate)

Cognitive Component – Reflective of a person’s awareness of and knowledge about an object or subject (know, believe)

Behavioural Component – Reflective of a person’s intentions and behavioural expectations, and predisposition to action


Measuring Attitude

• It can be difficult to measure attitude, therefore, indicators such as verbal expression, physiological measurement techniques and overt behaviour are used for this purpose. The three different components of attitude may require different measuring techniques

• Common techniques used in business research to determine attitude include rating, ranking, sorting and the choice technique


Rating Techniques to Measure Attitude

Rating Scales are frequently employed in business research for measuring attitude, and many scales have been developed for this purpose, including:

Simple Attitude Scales Category Scales Likert Scale Semantic Differential Numerical Scales Constant-Sum Scale Stapel Scale Graphic Scales


Simple Attitude Scales

In attitude scaling, individuals are typically asked whether they agree or disagree with a question (or questions) put to them, or they are asked to respond to a question or questions

Simple attitude scales have the properties of a nominal scale and the disadvantages that go with it, also, they do not permit fine distinctions in the respondents’ answers because their choice of answers is limited, but they can be useful in instances where the respondents’ education level is low and questionnaires lengthy


Category Scales

A category scale consists of several response categories to provide the respondent with alternative ratings

Category scales are more sensitive than rating scales which allow only two answer categories (because of the larger number of choices), and thus provides more data and information (see text example)


The Likert Scale

A likert Scale is a measure of attitudes designed to allow respondents to indicate how strongly they agree or disagree with carefully constructed statements that range from very positive to very negative towards an object or subject

The number of alternatives on the Likert scale can vary, often five alternatives are foreseen (see text book examples)

A Likert Scale may include a number of question items, each covering some aspect of the respondent’s attitude, and these items collectively form an an index


The Semantic Differential

The semantic differential is an attitude measuring technique that which consists of a series of seven bi-polar rating scales which allow response to a concept (e.g. organization, product, service, job)

See text book example

An advantage of the semantic differential is its versatility, on the other hand, it uses extremes which may influence respondents’ answers


Other Scales

Numerical Scales

Constant-Sum Scals

Stapel Scales

Graphic Rating Scales

For practical examples, see text book


Measuring Behavioral Intentions Behavioural intentions relate to „will“, „shall“ or „may“ questions:

Examples:– I will purchase Product X– I shall change my job from 1st January 2006– I may participate in Training Workshop Z

The Behavioural Differential: This is an instrument for measuring the behavioural intentions of subjects towards an object or category of objects. Example:

A HousewifeWould ___ : ___ : ___ : ___ : ___ : ___ : ___ Would Not

Purchase this laundry detergent

Research methodology week09

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