Chapter 5

Question 1

What is the timing of different processes in a quantitative study?

Answer 1

Thinking about variables and converting them into action is done during a separate stage, before data gathering and analysing.

Question 2

What is the timing of different processes in a qualitative study?

Answer 2

Measurement occurs during data collection.

Question 3

What is the data form in a quantitative study?

Answer 3

This type of study deals with precise numerical information converted into a common medium so that analysing is more efficient.

Question 4

What is the data form in a qualitative study?

Answer 4

This type of study deals with symbols that are not converted into a common medium. Rather, they are measured through different techniques to retain their diversity.

Question 5

What are the linkages in a quantitative study?

Answer 5

This type of study follows a clear sequence. We first reflect on the concepts, then develop a preplanned measurement technique that can bridge between concepts and data before the collection phase.

Question 6

What are the linkages in a qualitative study?

Answer 6

This type of study follows no clear sequence. We first reflect on the concepts, then develop a measurement. However, we continue to refine and develop, in an interactive process, the concepts and measurements.

Question 7

What is conceptualisation?

Answer 7

Conceptualisation is a process through which a construct receives meaning through a conceptual definition. This definition aims to state the meaning of that construct explicitly through abstract, theoretical terms.

Question 8

What is operationalisation?

Answer 8

Operationalisation is a process through which a conceptual definition is linked to a specific set of measurement techniques. It connects abstract ideas and concrete empirical procedures by referring to specific operations of action.

Question 9

What is measurement validity?

Answer 9

Measurement validity refers to the truthfulness of a measure. Furthermore, it analyses the extent to which the measurement technique measures what it is intended to measure.

Question 10

What is face validity?

Answer 10

An instrument is said to have face validity if it is judged to measure the concept of interest in the eyes of others. It is a consensus method.

Question 11

What is content validity?

Answer 11

In order to have content validity the measurement needs to capture the complete meaning of a concept of interest. If this is desired, the conceptual definition needs to be very clear and the measurement needs to capture every aspect of it.

Question 12

What is criterion validity?

Answer 12

Criterion validity indicates the level towards which your measure agrees with other known measures or other data sources that are deemed to be valuable.

Question 13

What are the types of criterion validity?

Answer 13

Concurrent validity and predictive validity

Question 14

What is concurrent validity?

Answer 14

Concurrent validity indicates that the newly developed measure has a strong association with previously developed measures. A new indicator will be compared to a pre-existing one that was deemed to be valid.

Question 15

What is predictive validity?

Answer 15

Predictive validity argues wether the measurement will be predictive of future measures studying the same concept. It is important to have a clear theory about the construct and how it relates to other constructs.

Question 16

What is the meaning of measurement validity in qualitative studies?

Answer 16

Authenticity is highly relevant. Subject authenticity refers to a sincere account of the social life. Researcher authenticity refers to the lack of distortions of the researcher with the account that the respondent gave. Interpretation may still be applied, only if it stays as close as possible to the statements of the respondent.

Question 17

What is measure reliability?

Answer 17

Measure reliability is achieved if the same outcomes are presented when the studies are replicated under similar conditions

Question 18

How can you increase reliability?

Answer 18

By clearly conceptualising constructs, increasing the level of measurement, using multiple indicators and using pilot-tests.

Question 19

What is the relationship between validity and reliability?

Answer 19

Validity and reliability are usually complementary concepts, but they can conflict with each other. At times, as validity increases, reliability becomes more difficult to attain, and vice versa.
When something has high reliability and low validity it means that your measure is not measuring the right thing even if it produces reliable results.
When something has low validity and low reliability, your measurement is not good.
When something has high validity and high reliability, then your measurement is spot on.

Question 20

What are continuous variables? Provide examples.

Answer 20

Continuous variables have an infinite number of attributes that flow along a continuum. They are often used in quantitative studies. An example would be income, age, temperature (15C, 20C, 25C etc.)

Question 21

What are discrete variables?

Answer 21

Discrete variables have a relatively fixed set of separate values or variable attributes. Instead of a smooth continuum of values, discrete variables contain distinct categories. They are often used in qualitative studies. An example would be religion, marital status, temperature (hot or cold).

Question 22

What is the relationship between variables and levels of measurement?

Answer 22

Whether a variable is continuous or discrete will affect the levels of measurement.

Question 23

What are the four levels of measurement?

Answer 23

Nominal, ordinal, interval and ratio.

Question 24

What is the relationship between conceptualisation on variables and measurement levels?

Answer 24

How you conceptualise a construct can limit how precisely you will be able to measure it. For example, temperature is usually a continuous variable (e.g., degrees), but it is also possible to measure it with discrete categories (e.g., hot or cold). While you can often reconceptualise continuous variables into discrete ones; it does not work the other way around. Most discrete variables cannot be reconceptualised as continuous variables, but you can conceptualise related constructs as continuous (e.g., femininity, degree of religiousness).

Question 25

What is the nominal level of measurement?

Answer 25

Nominal measures are discrete and indicate only that there is a difference among categories (e.g., religion: Protestant, Catholic etc.).

Question 26

What is the ordinal level of measurement?

Answer 26

Ordinal measures are also discrete. They indicate a difference, plus the categories can be ordered or ranked (e.g., letter grades: A, B, C, D, F; opinion measures: strongly agree, agree, disagree, strongly disagree).

Question 27

What is the interval level of measurement?

Answer 27

Interval measures are continuous. They do everything the nominal and ordinal measures do, plus you can specify the amount of distance between categories (e.g., Fahrenheit or Celsius temperature: 5°, 45°, 90°; IQ scores: 95, 110, 125). Arbitrary zeroes may be used in interval measures; they are just there to help keep score.

Question 28

What is the ratio level of measurement?

Answer 28

Ratio measures are also continuous. They do everything all the other levels do, plus there is a true zero. A true zero makes it possible to state relations in terms of proportion or ratios (e.g., money income: $10, $100, $500; years of formal schooling: 1 year, 10 years, 13 years).

Question 29

What is the difference between a true and an arbitrary zero?

Answer 29

An arbitrary zero is when the symbol for the number zero is placed on a continuum as a “placeholder”. Arbitrary zeroes appear in the measurement of temperature. A true zero represents the absence of the measured value. For example, zero weight means the absence of weight.

Question 30

What are some features of good measurement?

Answer 30

Mutually exclusive means that an individual or case fits into one and only one attribute of a variable.
Exhaustive attributes means that all cases fit into one of the attributes of a variable.
Unidimensionality means that all the items in a scale or index fit together, or measure a single construct.

Question 31

What is a scale?

Answer 31

A scale is a measure in which a researcher captures the intensity, direction, level, or potency of a variable construct. It arranges observations on a continuum. A scale can use a single indicator or multiple indicators. Most are at the ordinal level of measurement.

Question 32

What is an index?

Answer 32

An index is a measure in which a researcher combines several distinct indicators of a construct into a single score. This composite score is often a simple sum of the multiple indicators. It is used for content validity. Indexes are often measured at the interval or ratio level.

Question 33

What is a unweighted index?

Answer 33

An unweighted index gives each item equal weight. It involves adding up the items without modification, as if you multiplied each by 1 (or -1 for items that are negative).

Question 34

What is a weighted index?

Answer 34

In a weighted index, you value or weigh some items more than others. The size of weights can come from theoretical assumptions. Weighting can change the scores of an index

Question 35

What is standardisation?

Answer 35

Some indexes and single-indicator measures are rates. Rates involve standardising the value of an item to make comparisons possible. You often need to standardise the items in an index before you can combine them. Standardisation involves selecting a base and dividing a raw measure by the base. It allows us to compare different units on a common basis.

Question 36

What is a Likert scale?

Answer 36

Likert scales usually ask people to indicate whether they agree or disagree with a statement. Likert scales need a minimum of two categories, such as “agree” and “disagree.” Using only two choices creates a crude measure and forces distinctions into only two categories. It is usually better to use four to eight categories. This is a simple sampling method that usually provides ordinal-level measurements.

Question 37

What is a semantic differential scale?

Answer 37

It provides an indirect measure of how a person feels about a concept, object, or other person. The technique measures subjective feelings toward something by using adjectives. It uses polar opposite adjectives to create a rating measure or scale. The semantic differential captures the connotations associated with whatever is being evaluated and provides an indirect measure of it. Results from a semantic differential tell you how one person perceives different concepts.

Question 38

What is a visual analog scale?

Answer 38

A visual analog scale provides a range from 0 to 100 and asks the participants to rate the way they experience something on this scale. For example, 0 is very cold, 50 is neither cold or warm and 100 is very warm. Hence, they have to assess the temperature on this analog.

Question 39

What is a Guttman scale?

Answer 39

You must design a study with the Guttman scaling technique in mind because it is applied after data collection. Guttman scaling begins with measuring a set of indicators or items. The indicators are usually measured in a simple yes/no or present/absent fashion. The participants are asked to respond to a set of statements with one of the two available options from the response set. This scale is created with elements that can be ordered in a hierarchical manner. For example, if someone answers yes to the question ‘Do you like pizza?’, they are most likely to score higher in a pizza liking scale.
Furthermore, it is important to weight each element so that those who have the same responses throughout the whole scale can be eliminated. The aim is to discover which statement is agreed with by most participants.

Question 40

What is a Bogardus social distance scale?

Answer 40

The Bogardus social distance scale measures the social distance separating ethnic or other groups from each other. It is used with one group to determine how much distance it feels toward a target or “out-group”. The scale has a simple logic: People respond to a series of ordered statements; those that are most threatening or most socially distant are at one end, and those that might be least threatening or socially intimate are at the other end. This is a type of Guttman scale.