Question

Determine the level of measurement for each of the variables: Nominal, Ordinal, Interval - Ratio

               a) Number of people in family

               b) Percentage of university students who attend public school

               c) The rating of the overall quality of a textbook from excellent to poor

               d) Your annual income

               e) The presidential candidate you voted for

               f) Your age

Answer 1

Nominal :

Let’s start with the easiest one to understand. Nominal scales are used for labeling variables, without any quantitative value. “Nominal” scales could simply be called “labels.”

Ordinal: With ordinal scales, it is the order of the values is what’s important and significant, but the differences between each one aren't really known.

Interval: Interval scales are numeric scales in which we know not only the order but also the exact differences between the values. The classic example of an interval scale is Celsius temperature because the difference between each value is the same. For example, the difference between 60 and 50 degrees is a measurable 10 degrees, as is the difference between 80 and 70 degrees. Time is another good example of an interval scale in which the increments are known, consistent, and measurable.

Ratio: Ratio scales are the ultimate nirvana when it comes to measurement scales because they tell us about the order, they tell us the exact value between units, AND they also have an absolute zero–which allows for a wide range of both descriptive and inferential statistics to be applied. At the risk of repeating myself, everything above about interval data applies to ratio scales + ratio scales have a clear definition of zero. Good examples of ratio variables include height and weight.

a)  Ratio

b) Ratio

c) Ordinal

d) Ratio

e) Nominal

f) Ratio

Thanks :)