Professor Johns' Research
Prof. Johns wanted to measure the way his students feel about various student resources on campus, especially the Learning and Resource Center (LRC). As a preliminary step, Prof. Johns measures the percent of students who know where the LRC is located.
Identify the way the measure is being assessed:
Percent Correct
Identify which scale of measurement is being used:
Children in elementary school are evaluated and classified as non-readers (0), beginning readers (1), grade level readers (2), or advanced readers (3). The classification is done in order to place them in reading groups.
Ordinal scales
You are interested in changes in heart rate while students take exams.
What is the best type of measure to use for this research objective?
Physiological
In Professor Johns' preliminary step, he measured the percent of students who know where the LRC is located.
Identify which type of measure is being used:
Cognitive
Identify which scale of measurement is being used:
During a clinical interview, survivors of a tornado are asked to state “no” or “yes” to whether they have experienced specific symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in the past week. The number “0” is assigned to “no” and the number “1” is assigned to “yes”.
Nominal scales
Before diagnosing a patient with a concussion, doctors will often administer a memory test to ensure the patient is not experiencing memory loss.
What type of measure is being used to assess memory?
Cognitive
Prof. Johns measures how often students use the LRC.
Identify which type of measure is being used:
Behavioral
Identify which scale of measurement is being used:
As part of a test preparation course, students are asked to take a practice version of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE). This is a standardized test. Scores can range from 200 to 800 with a population mean of 500 and a population standard deviation of 100.
Interval Scales
Interviewers ask research subjects to describe in some detail their relationships with important people in their lives. Using established criteria, raters review these personal descriptions and assign a dominant attachment category (Secure - 1, Preoccupied - 2, Fearful - 3, Dismissing - 4)
Nominal
Professor Johns measures how often students use the LRC.
Identify the way the measure is being assessed:
Frequency of Responding
Identify which scale of measurement is being used:
Emory University wants to know which dormitories the students prefer. The administration counts the number of applications for each dorm. Administrators assign a rank to each dorm based on the number of applications received.
Ordinal scales
The research question: “Are students satisfied with the academic advising process on their campus?"
What's the best way to measure student satisfaction with advising using an ordinal scale?
1= Very Dissatisfied
2 = Dissatisfied
3= Neutral
4= Satisfied
5= Very Satisfied
On a scale of 1-10, Prof. Johns asks the students to rate how positively they feel about their experiences at the LRC.
Identify which type of measure is being used AND the way the measure is being assessed:
Attitudinal & Degree of Response
During a clinical interview, survivors of a tornado are asked to state “no” or “yes” to whether they have experienced specific symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in the past week. The interviewer adds up the total number of “yes” responses to create a Total PTSD Symptoms scale.
Ratio scales
The research question “How often do college students read books other than those assigned in classes?”
How could you measure this on a ratio scale?
Ask participants to enter the number (#) of times they read books other than those assigned in classes each week/month/semester.