Different Types of Measurement Scales Require Different Descriptive Statistics

Fred B. Bryant, Ph.D., Loyola University Chicago Measurement involves the use of predetermined rules to assign numbers to categorize or quantify objects, events, or characteristics of people. In introductory statistics courses, students often learn that there are four basic types or levels of measurement in the health and psychosocial sciences. However, rarely do students understand why […]

What Really Matters When Using Psychosocial Measurement Tools

Fred B. Bryant, Ph.D. Loyola University Chicago When researchers or practitioners need to find a way to measure a particular variable or outcome in their work, they look for a measurement instrument that has both reliability and validity. But what exactly does it mean for a measurement instrument to be “reliable” or “valid,” why do reliability […]

The Necessity of Measurement in Everyday Life

Fred B. Bryant, Ph.D. Loyola University Chicago   Modern society simply could not exist without measurement. Twenty-first century civilization is inconceivable without the indispensable measurement tools on which everyday life depends. Time, size, distance, speed, direction, weight, volume, temperature, pressure, force, sound, light, energy—these are among the physical properties for which humans have developed accurate measures, […]