The way to link and analyze abstract concepts to observable events.

"What do I need to understand?"

"What data will I collect?"

The measurement process:

• Identify and define the concept of interest
• Specify an observable event
• Evaluate and revise the observable event

It is a quickly moving field

Dated Measures 

Caused by fast paced industry

Things change all the time

changes what is measured

Accurate Measurement units

Getting harder to measure time and frecuency

Consistency in measurements

This stage is when you determine the general area to be explored and end it with a detailed, explicit definition of what is measured.

All research starts with a need for informat

Concept: An invented name for a property of an object, person, state, or event.

There are explicit and abstract concepts

A conceptual definition expresses a concept's central idea.

Researchers need to be sensitive to the fact that for any particular concept there is a bunch of definitions.

The process requires that all involved in the research agree on what is the conceptual definition.

Once a concept has been identified and defined, then it is operationally defined.

An operational definition translates the concept into an observable event

Similar to the different operational definitions of affection, differences in perspective, among researchers often lead to differences in conceptual definitions.

Process:

• Explicitly Specify the concept of interest
• Explore different aspects of the concepts meaning
• Explicitly specify what can be observed
• Evaluate and select one or more of the alternatives identified 

Keep in mind the the operational definition states what will be observed.

Determines what specific questions will be asked to collect information

There are four levels of measurement:

• nominal
• ordinal
• interval
• ratio

occurs when the goal is the classification of a characteristic/attribute

common in observational or behavioral data collection

• Categories in nominal measurement are mutually exclusive and collectively exhaustive. This means that every level of the characteristic fits into only one category and each characteristic fits somewhere
• numbers are assigned to categories/responses, but they are simply labels
• all objects/people are assumed to be the same 

arranges characteristics or attributes in an ordered relationship to some degree of magnitude

a number represents an object's ranking among other objects

relative standing - total extent of an ordinal measure's interpretive value

relative distance - the degree to which one object ranks from the other

on the ordinal level of measurement numbers only represent a place in an ordered array

Advanced form of ordinal measurement

allows you to determine both the relative ranking of objects and the distance between the objects

interval scales do not have an absolute 0 point and as a result you cannot possibly make a statement about how many times higher one score is from another

the highest level of measurement

have equal distances and a meaningful 0 point

a common form of ratio measurement is the constant sum scale

(a respondent distributes an allotted amount of points across a set of objects)

ratio level measurements are common for research that focuses on respondent behaviors

once concepts are identified and level of measurement determined, specific questions are written to collect the information

open-ended questions: 

• respondents answer in their own words without influence
• provide context to interpreting an individual's responses to closed-end questions
• a good way to introduce a topic area
• tend to be easier to write than closed-end questions
• unaided responses

Closed-end questions:

• produce less variability in range of response
• easier for respondent to answer
• quicker to administer
• easier to analyze
• only should be used when all options are present
• aided responses

pilot research should be conducted in order to assess the reliability and validity of any untested measures

Reliability: the extent to which the survey produces the same results consistently

Validity: the extent to which the survey actually measures what it is intended to measure

both are independent but related aspects of measurement

Test-retest reliability is a common way to assess reliability

obtained by surveying the same group of people under equivalent conditions

second alternative is to administer a second but similar test

if internal consistency is examined, reliability is valid

validity only occurs when there is a high degree of correspondence between a concept's operational definition and the specific observable event used to record the concept.

Face Validity is the most basic form, means all parties are in consensus

Concurrent validity is assessed by comparing a new measurement with an alternative at the same point in time

Predictive validity estimated by determining the extent to which performance on one variable predicts performance on another variable (take the SAT for example)

Measurement is the way the abstract is linked to the observable 

Three stages:

• Identify and define the concept of interest
• specify an observable event
• evaluate and revise

Level of measurement is determined by the level of detail needed

data at higher levels is less limiting

data collected at higher levels can be grouped together and downgraded

higher levels can be more thoroughly analyzed

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