Primary Scales of Measurement Introduction The mathematical properties of the numbers you are going to analyze are important

because they determine which mathematical operations are allowed. This, in turn, determines which statistics you can use with those numbers. We can describe the scales of measurement used in everyday examples in terms of their abstract number properties. Presented below are a series of everyday examples of each of the four primary scales of measurement. a. nominal b. ordinal c. interval d. ratio Properties of Abstract Number System The properties of the abstract number system that are relevant to scale of measurement are identity, magnitude, equal interval, and absolute/true zero. Identity means that each number has a particular meaning. Magnitude means that numbers have an inherent order from smaller to larger. Equal intervals means that the difference between numbers (units) anywhere on the scale is the same (eg., the difference between 4 and 5 is the same as the difference between 76 and 77). Absolute/true zero means that the zero point represents the absence of the property being measured (eg., no money, no behavior, none correct) Nominal Scales: Nominal scales are the lowest scales of measurements. Numbers are assigned to categories as "names". Which number is assigned to which category is completely arbitrary. Therefore, the only number property of the nominal scale of measurement is identity. The number gives us the identity of the category assigned. The only mathematical operation we can perform with nominal data is to count.

Classifying people according to gender is a common application of a nominal scale. In the example below, the number "1" is assigned to "male" and the number "2" is assigned to "female". We can just as easily assign the number "1" to "female" and "2" to male. The purpose of the number is merely to name the characteristic or give it "identity".

As we can see from the graphs, changing the number assigned to "male" and "female" does not have any impact on the data -- we still have the same number of men and women in the data set. Additional examples for everyday nominal scales are zip codes, area of country. Ordinal: Ordinal scales have the property of magnitude as well as identity. The numbers represent a quality being measured (identity) and can tell us whether a case has more of the quality measured or less of the quality measured than another case (magnitude). The distance between scale points is not equal. Ranked preferences are presented as an example of ordinal scales encountered in everyday life. We also address the concept of unequal distance between scale points. Ranked preferences: we are often interested in preferences for different tastes, especially if we are planning a party. Let's say that we asked the three students pictured below to rank their preferences for four different sodas. We usually rank our strongest preference as "1". With four sodas, our lowest preference would be "4". For each soda, we assign a rank that tells us the order (magnitude) of the preference for that particular soda (identity). The number simply tells us that we prefer one soda over another, not "how much" more we prefer the soda.

Because of the property of magnitude (or order), the numbers are no longer considered arbitrary as they are in nominal scales. If you asked students their preferences because you wanted to serve what they like best at a party, you would serve our first student Pepsi, our second student Sprite, and our third student Surge. Let's change the numbers assigned to "Pepsi" and "Coke" for our first student.

Changing the numbers changes the meaning of the preferences. You would now serve our first student Coke and not Pepsi. Distance between Scale Points: we assume that the intervals between scale points on ordinal scales are unequal. Thus, the "distance" between a rank of "1" and "2" is not necessarily the same as the "distance" between ranks of "3" and "4". Let's say our first student likes Pepsi the best but also has a strong liking for Coke, which she rated as "2". She thinks Sprite is OK but prefers cola drinks. She really does not like Surge at all. In this case the preference "distance" between "3" and "4" is much greater than the preference "distance" between ranks "1" and "2" even though the numerical distance between them is the same. This concept of unequal psychological distance is pictured below.

Other examples for everyday ordinal scales: Socioeconomic status, class rank, letter grade. Interval: Interval scales have the properties of identity, magnitude and equal distance. The equal distance between scale points allows us to know how many units greater than, or less than, one case is from another on the measured characteristic. So, we can always be confident that the meaning of the distance between 25 and 35 is the same as the distance between 65 and 75. Interval scales DO NOT have a true zero point; the number "0" is arbitrary.

A good example of an interval scale is the measurement of temperature on Fahrenheit or Celsius scales. The units on a thermometer represent equal volumes of mercury between each interval on the scale. The thermometer identifies for us how many units of mercury correspond to the temperature measured. We know that 60 is hotter than 30 and that there is the same 10-degree difference in temperature between 20 and 30 as between 50 and 60. Zero degrees on either scale is an arbitrary number and not a "true" zero. The zero point does not indicate an absence of temperature; it is an arbitrary point on the scale.

Other examples for everyday interval scales: Age (0 is culturally determined), SAT scores. Ratio: Ratio scales of measurement have all of the properties of the abstract number system including identity, magnitude, equal distance and absolute/true zero. These properties allow us to apply all of the possible mathematical operations (addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division) in data analysis. The absolute/true zero allows us to know how many times greater one case is than another. Scales with an absolute zero and equal interval are considered ratio scales.

Ratio Money is a good example of an everyday ratio scale of measurement. If we have $100 we have twice as much purchasing power as $50.

If we have no money in our pockets, we have absolutely no ability to purchase anything. Other examples of everyday ratio scales: Household size, annual income. Why the scale of measurement matters: The scale of measurement of the variables determines the mathematical operations that are permitted for those variables. In turn, these mathematical operations determine which statistics can be applied to the data. The chart below lists the scales of measurement that we have reviewed in this exercise and the types of statistics that can be applied to variables created using these scales of measurement.