PRESENTED and REPORTED BY:

BRIAN G. MELLIZA, MBA

CTP – EU
2ND Semester 2023 - 2024
Measurement in education includes
the development of instruments or
protocols for obtaining information,
procedures for analyzing and
evaluating the quality of that
information, and strategies for
communicating the information to
audiences, such as educators,
policymakers, parents, and students.
Measurement theory, also known as
psychometric theory, provides the
foundation for evaluating
educational tests and their uses and
interpretations.

Validity and reliability are the most

fundamental measurement theory
concepts.
Levels of Measurement

1. Nominal
2. Ordinal
3. Interval
4. Ratio

Published on July 16, 2020

by Pritha Bhandari
Revised on June 21, 2023.
Levels of measurement, also called
scales of measurement, tell you how
precisely variables are recorded.

In scientific research, a variable is

anything that can take on different
values across your data set
(e.g., height or test scores).
There are 4 levels of measurement:

•Nominal: the data can only be categorized

•Ordinal: the data can be categorized and ranked
•Interval: the data can be categorized, ranked, and
evenly spaced
•Ratio: the data can be categorized, ranked, evenly
spaced, and has a natural zero.

Depending on the level of measurement of the

variable, what you can do to analyze your data may be
limited. There is a hierarchy in the complexity and
precision of the level of measurement, from low
(nominal) to high (ratio).
Nominal, ordinal, interval, and ratio
data

Going from lowest to highest, the 4

levels of measurement are cumulative.

This means that they each take on the

properties of lower levels and add new
properties.
 Nominal level Examples of nominal scales

You can categorize your data by labelling them in •City of birth

mutually exclusive groups, but there is no order •Gender
between the categories. •Ethnicity
•Car brands
•Marital status
 Ordinal level Examples of ordinal scales

You can categorize and rank your data in an order, but •Top 5 Olympic medalists
you cannot say anything about the intervals between •Language ability (e.g.,
the rankings. beginner, intermediate,
fluent)
Although you can rank the top 5 Olympic medalists, •Likert-type questions (e.g.,
this scale does not tell you how close or far apart they very dissatisfied to very
are in number of wins. satisfied)
 Interval level Examples of interval scales

You can categorize, rank, and infer equal •Test scores (e.g., IQ or
intervals between neighboring data points, but there is exams)
no true zero point. •Personality inventories
•Temperature in Fahrenheit
The difference between any two adjacent
temperatures is the same: one degree. But zero
degrees is defined differently depending on the scale –
it doesn’t mean an absolute absence of temperature.

The same is true for test scores and personality

inventories. A zero on a test is arbitrary; it does not
mean that the test-taker has an absolute lack of the
trait being measured.
 Ratio level Examples of ratio scales

You can categorize, rank, and infer equal •Height

intervals between neighboring data points, and there •Age
is a true zero point. •Weight
•Temperature in Kelvin
A true zero means there is an absence of the variable
of interest. In ratio scales, zero does mean an
absolute lack of the variable.

For example, in the Kelvin temperature scale, there

are no negative degrees of temperature – zero means
an absolute lack of thermal energy.
Why are levels of measurement important?

The level at which you measure a variable determines

how you can analyze your data.

The different levels limit which descriptive statistics you

can use to get an overall summary of your data, and
which type of inferential statistics you can perform on
your data to support or refute your hypothesis.

In many cases, your variables can be measured at

different levels, so you have to choose the level of
measurement you will use before data collection
begins.
Example of a variable at 2 levels of measurement
You can measure the variable of income at an
ordinal or ratio level.

•Ordinal level: You create brackets of income

ranges: $0–$19,999, $20,000–$39,999, and
$40,000–$59,999. You ask participants to select the
bracket that represents their annual income. The
brackets are coded with numbers from 1–3.

•Ratio level: You collect data on the exact annual

incomes of your participants.
Participant Income (ordinal level) Income (ratio level)

A Bracket 1 $12,550

B Bracket 2 $39,700

C Bracket 3 $40,300
At a ratio level, you can see that the
difference between A and B’s incomes is far
greater than the difference between B and
C’s incomes.

At an ordinal level, however, you only know

the income bracket for each participant, not
their exact income. Since you cannot say
exactly how much each income differs from
the others in your data set, you can only
order the income levels and group the
participants.
Which descriptive statistics can I apply on my data?

Descriptive statistics help you get an idea of the “middle”

and “spread” of your data through measures of
central tendency and variability.

When measuring the central tendency or variability of

your data set, your level of measurement decides which
methods you can use based on the mathematical
operations that are appropriate for each level.

The methods you can apply are cumulative; at higher

levels, you can apply all mathematical operations and
measures used at lower levels.
 Data type Mathematical operations Measures of central Measures of variability
tendency

Nominal •Equality (=, ≠) •Mode •None

Ordinal •Equality (=, ≠) •Mode •Range
•Comparison (>, <) •Median •Interquartile range

Interval •Equality (=, ≠) •Mode •Range

•Comparison (>, <) •Median •Interquartile range
•Addition, subtraction (+,−) •Arithmetic mean •Standard deviation
•Variance

Ratio •Equality (=, ≠) •Mode •Range

•Comparison (>, <) •Median •Interquartile range
•Addition, subtraction (+,−) •Arithmetic mean •Standard déviation
•Multiplication, division (×, •*Geometric mean •Variance
÷) •**Relative standard
déviation
*Arithmetic mean is the most commonly used type of
mean. A geometric mean is a method used for
averaging values from scales with widely varying ranges
for individual subjects. You can then compare the
subject level means with each other. While an
arithmetic mean is based on adding values, a geometric
mean multiplies values.

**Relative standard deviation is simply the standard

deviation divided by the mean. If you use it on
temperature measures in Celsius, Fahrenheit and
Kelvin, you’d get 3 totally different answers. The only
meaningful answer is the one based on a scale with a
true zero, the Kelvin scale.
TOPIC ASSIGNMENT
1. A researcher collects demographic data from her participants. She asks
participants for their city of birth. Which level of measurement is this?

A. Nominal
B. Ordinal
C. Interval
D. Ratio

2. She then asks participants to report the number of hours they spent exercising
in the past week. Which level of measurement is this?

A. Nominal
B. Ordinal
C. Interval
D. Ratio
3. The researcher collects data on anxiety using the Beck Anxiety Scale.
In this scale, scores range from 0-44, but a score of zero simply means
low anxiety rather than a total lack of anxiety.
Which level of measurement is this?

A. Nominal
B. Ordinal
C. Interval
D. Ratio

4. The researcher asks participants to select their level of activity in general

from the following: sedentary, light physical activity, moderate physical
activity, or vigorous physical activity.
Which level of measurement is this?

A. Nominal
B. Ordinal
C. Interval
D. Ratio
 References:

Robert Lee Linn was an American educational psychologist who has

made notable contributions to the understanding of educational
assessments. He studied technical and policy issues relating to the
application of test data, and the effects of high-stakes testing on teaching
and learning.

Rebecca Zwick is an American statistician and researcher in educational

assessment and psychometrics. She is a professor emeritus in the
Gevirtz Graduate School of Education at the University of California,
Santa Barbara and the author of a book on university and college
admission

Cecil Randy Reynolds is an American psychology professor best

known for his work in psychological testing and assessment.