Introduction

Scales

Likert Scales

Bogardus
Social
Distance
Scales

Guttman
Scales

Indices

Additional Considerations

Typologies

Measurement
Error

Aids

Final Composite Scores. After deciding which items to keep, the scores for the remaining items are added to get the final composite score for each respondent. In our example we would have retained items 1, 2, 3, 6 and 7. For the illustrative respondent, whose scores were shown in Box 7.3, item scores would be 3+3+4+3+3 and the person's total score would be 16. Each questionnaire would be scored in the same way for each respondent. Based on these five items, composite scores could range from 0 to 20.

For another illustration of Likert scaling, go to Likert Scaling.

Bogardus social distance scales

Imagine that you wanted to find out the attitudes of people in your city toward Europeans or some other group of foreigners. Instead of developing a Likert scale, you could ask persons a series of questions about how closely they are willing to associate with Europeans, from the least possible contact to more intimate interaction. One set of questions could be:

1. Are you willing to let Europeans live in our country?
    Yes    No
2. Are you willing to let Europeans live in your village, town or city?
    Yes    No
3. Are you willing to let Europeans live in your neighborhood?
    Yes    No
4. Are you willing to let Europeans live next to you?
    Yes    No
5. Are you willing to let your children play with European children?
    Yes    No
6. Would be willing to let a child of yours marry a European?
    Yes    No

This form of scaling is named after Emory Bogardus who developed this form of measurement in the 1930s (Bogardus, 1933). Items are selected and ordered to measure the social distance respondents want to keep from members of some designated group. Social distance, in effect, becomes a measure of how willing persons are to associate with members of the group in question. Social distance is measured by presenting a series of statements, as illustrated with attitudes towards Europeans. The reasoning behind the approach is that persons who are uncomfortable or refuse contact at a specified social distance will also refuse closer contact.

Constructing a social distance scale follows the same process as described for Likert scales, but with several modifications. If you decide to develop a social distance scale, you have to do the proper conceptual analysis, identify what you intend to measure, and write a series of culturally appropriate and clear questions. Usually 5 to 10 items are sufficient for measuring social distance. Once written, the questions are presented to each respondent in order of increasing contact. Questions are asked until the respondent answers "no." The last "yes" is taken as the respondent's willingness to interact with members of the group in question. It is assumed that once a "no" is given, the respondent would answer no to all following items.

Generally social distance scales are scored as 1 for each "yes" response and 0 for each "no" response. Scale scores, therefore, vary from 0 for those who would not have even the least association with member of some group to a number equal to the number of items answered as "yes." Progressively higher scores indicate greater acceptance and presumably more favorable attitudes toward the group in question.