Richard Gonzalez
Center Director, Research Center for Group Dynamics, Institute for Social Research
Director, BioSocial Methods Collaborative, RCGD
Amos N Tversky Collegiate Professor, Psychology and Statistics, LSA
Professor of Marketing, Stephen M Ross School of Business
Professor of Integrative Systems and Design, College of Engineering
| E-mail: | Email Richard Gonzalez |
| Address: | Research Center for Group Dynamics Institute for Social Research University of Michigan 426 Thompson Street Ann Arbor, Michigan 48106 |
| Phone: | 734-647-6785 |
A piece on interval scaling from the point of view of classic psychometrics
Not many researchers use the classic psychometric scaling work such as successive intervals any more. The work goes back to the early days of psychometrics (e.g., Fechner, Thurstone) and even some early mathematical psychology (e.g., Coombs). There still is use for these classic models in understanding the meaning of rating scales.
Edwards, A. L. & Gonzalez, R. (1993). Simplified successive interval scaling. Applied Psychological Measurement, 17, 21-27.
DOI: 10.1177/014662169301700106 PDF
Allen Edwards passed away July 1994. Here is an obituary.
Abstract
A simplified version of successive intervals scaling is described. Scale values for various datasets obtained with simplified successive intervals scaling are approximately linearly related to those obtained with traditional successive intervals scaling and with the method of pair comparisons. Simplified successive intervals scaling can be used with any number of stimuli and is as easy to apply as the method of equal-appearing intervals. However, simplified successive intervals scaling does not assume, as does the method of equal-appearing intervals, that rating categories or intervals are of equal width.
