Dr. Michael R. Hyman, NMSU
Levels of Measurement
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Types of Measurement Scales
• Nominal/categorical
• Ordinal/rank order
• Interval
• Ratio
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Nominal/Categorical Data
• Zip code of residence
• Employment status
• Marital status
• Gender
• Race
• Religion
• Ethnicity
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Ratio Data
• Market share
• Sales (units and dollars)
• Income
• Number of salespersons per territory
• Number of full-time employed members of
household
• Number of children in household
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Properties of Measurement
Scales
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Properties of Measurement
Scales
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Take measurements at highest
level
Measure can’t exceed basic
nature of attribute
e.g., taste
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Permissible Statistics
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Descriptive Statistics for
Different Scale Types
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Recap
• Levels of measurement
– Nominal, ordinal, interval, and ratio
• Properties of scales
– Order, distance, and origin
• Permissible statistics