Attitude

Measurement &
Scaling Technique

Introduction
It

is important for marketers to

measure attitudes. Marketers try to
understand these attitudes and
influence them to gain and advantage
in the market. Measuring attitudes is
a highly difficult process and unlike
measurement scales in the physical
like measuring height, weight, etc.,
measurement scales for attitude are
less precise. There are different
attitude scales that can be used to
measure attitudes as precisely as
possible.

Meaning
Attitude is a degree of
positive
or
negative
effect
associated
with
some
psychological object. Attitudes
are subjective and personal.
Attitude influences the behavior.
Purchase decisions are based
upon the attitudes. The attitudes
can change over time.

Definition
Attitudes are an overall
evaluation that allows one to
respond
in
a
consistently
favorable or unfavorable manner
with respect to a given object or
alternative.
- Engel

Components of
attitude

Affective component
This refer to the
respondents liking or preferences
for an object. This is also known as
the feeling component.
(a) I like the product A
(b) Advertisement X is poor.
This component reveals the
buyers positive or negative
attitude towards the product.

Cognitive component
This refers to the respondents
beliefs, knowledge or awareness
about an event or an object. This is
usually
acquired
from
friends,
periodicals etc. sometimes, it is also
known as the belief component.
Statements like(a) I am aware of the product X
(b) I have no idea about the product
B
(c) That institute is excellent.

Behavioral component
This refer to the
respondents intention to buy.
This is a situation prior to the
purchase. In marketing, the
usage
and
buying
pattern
depends on this component. This
is
also
known
as
action
component.

Determinants of
attitude
Attitudes undergo change
due to five factors:
Information gathered in the past
relating to the actual experience
Individual perception and belief
Exposure to new information
Change in the group membership
Individual personality

Measurement
Scales

Nominal Scale
Nominal

scale is simply a system of

assigning number symbols to events in
order to label them. Nominal scale is the
least powerful level of measurement. It
indicates no order or distance relationship
and has no arithmetic origin. A nominal
scale
simply
describes
differences
between things by assigning them to
categories. Nominal data are thus,
counted data. The scale wastes any
information that we may about varying
degrees of attitude, skill, understandings,
etc.

Ordinal Scale
The

lowest level of the ordered

scale that is commonly used is the
ordinal scale. The ordinal scale
places events in order, but there is
no attempt to make the intervals of
the scale equal in terms of some
rule. Rank orders represent ordinal
scales and frequently used in
research relating to qualitative
phenomena.

Interval Scale
In

the case of interval scale, the

intervals are adjusted in terms of
some rule that has been established
as a basis for making the units
equal. The units are equal only in so
far as one accepts the assumptions
on which the rule is based. Interval
scales can have an arbitrary zero,
but it is not possible to determine
for them what may be called an
absolute zero or unique origin.

Ratio Scale
Ratio

scales have an absolute or true

zero of measurement. The term
absolute zero is not as precise as it
was once believed to be. We can
conceive of an absolute zero of
length and similarly we can conceive
of an absolute zero of time. Ratio
scale represent the actual amounts
of variables. Measures of physical
dimensions such as weight, height,
distance, etc, are example.

Importance
Scaling
Techniques
1)

Rating Scales

2)Method

of paired comparisons

3)Method

of rank order

THANK
YOU