The use of numerical value of adverbs of quantity and frequency in the measurement of behavior patterns: Transforming ordinal scales into interval scales

Abstract

This paper presents a research on rating scales in response to different situations. It aims to improve the significance and accuracy of ordinal scales, transforming them into interval scales. To reach this objective, the presented scales combine quantitative and qualitative perspectives, joining the ease of the Likert scale and the Thurstone's procedure. In this research, a sample of subjects was asked to indicate the numerical value of adverbs, in reference to a numerical scale. The results were subjected to statistical analysis, to assess their validity. Combining the qualitative dimension with a quantitative evaluation, this procedure can meet the biopsychosocial specificities of subjects, as required by the complexity paradigm. The results of this study seem to be an affirmative response to the questions about validity and reliability, and about the practicality of this procedure.