VARIABLES AND

MEASUREMENT
SCALES
Variables
These are “components of indicators which can be measured”
(Walliman, 2011, p. 66).
It is a concept which can take on different quantitative
values(Kothari, 2004, pp. 33).
It is also defined as any characteristics of objects or individuals that
can take on different values for different members of the group
under study (Petillos, n.d.). For example, IQ, gender height, weight,
political affiliation, religion, income, age, educational attainment,
occupation, etc.
Quantitative Variable
 Or also called as numerical variable
 These are variables that can take on numerical values.
Quantitative Variable
 Or also called as numerical variable
 These are variables that can take on numerical values.

Which are quantitative variables?

IQ, gender height, weight, political affiliation, religion,
income, age, educational attainment, occupation,
Qualitative Variable
 Or also called as vategorical variable
 These are variables that can take on non-numerical
values.
Qualitative Variable
 Or also called as categorical variable
 These are variables that can take on non-numerical
values.

Which are qualitative variables?

IQ, gender height, weight, political affiliation, religion,
income, age, educational attainment, occupation
VALUES CLASSIFIED ACCORDING
TO FUNCTIONAL RELATIONSHIP
According to functional relationship, variables are generally
categorized as independent and dependent variables.
Other classifications of variable according to functional
relationship are intervening variable, moderator variable,
and control variable.
Dependent Variable
 This is a variable which depends upon or is a consequence
of the other variable (Kothari, 2004, p. 34).
 It is the variable of prime interest to the researcher which
is presumed to be influenced by some other variables
(Petillos, n.d.).
Independent Variable
 It is the variable that is antecedent to the dependent
variable (Kothari, 2004, p. 34).
 On the other hand, it is a variable that is thought to
influence a dependent variable (Petillos, n.d.).
Identify the dependent and independent
variables.
1. How long a student sleeps affects test scores?
2. Which among the brands of paper towels holds the most
liquid?
3. Does caffeine affect someone’s appetite?
4. A scientist studies the impact of a drug on cancer.
5. You want to see which type of fertilizer helps plants grow
fastest, so you add a different brand of fertilizer to each
plant and see how tall they grow.
Intervening Variable
 An intervening variable affects the dependent variable as
it is produced by the main independent variable (Petillos,
n.d.).
 It is a hypothetical variable, meaning cannot be observed
in an experiment.
Age Level of Motivation Work Performance
Intervening Variable
 An intervening variable affects the dependent variable as it
is produced by the main independent variable (Petillos, n.d.).
 It is a hypothetical variable, meaning cannot be observed in
an experiment.

Age Level of Motivation Work Performance

Would serving or not serving breakfast to undernourished
school children improves their academic performance?
Moderating Variable
 It changes the strength or direction of an effect between
two variables.
 It influences (moderates) the impact of an independent
variable on a dependent variable (Petillos, n.d.).
Example:
According to American Psychological Association, stress has
a bigger impact on men than women.
Control Variable
 Its effect on the dependent variable is eliminated or
neutralized by making it constant.
VARIABLES CLASSIFIED
ACCORDING TO THE CONTINUITY
OF THE SCALE
 Variables which represent numerical measurements on a
continuous dimension or scale and can take any numerical value
within a continuum or interval are called continuous variables.
 On the other hand, quantitative variables which take on only
designated values (finite or countable) are called discrete variables
(Petillos, n.d.).
VARIABLES CLASSIFIED
ACCORDING TO THE CONTINUITY
OF THE SCALE
 Variables which represent numerical measurements on a
continuous dimension or scale and can take any numerical value
within a continuum or interval are called continuous variables.
 On the other hand, quantitative variables which take on only
designated values (finite or countable) are called discrete variables
(Petillos, n.d.).
Which do you think are continuous and discrete variables?
height, number of pregnancies, age, number of failing grades,
weight, income, number of times absent, temperature, distance
travelled between school and home, shoe sizes
VARIABLES CLASSIFIED
ACCORDING TO LEVEL OF
MEASUREMENT
Scales or Levels of Measurement refer to ways in which
variables/numbers are defined and categorized.
Nominal Scale
Nominal variables have levels that merely name categories.
Examples:
Gender (categories of male and female)
Marital status (categories of married or not)
Political party (categories of Liberal Party, PDP-Laban,
etc.
Hair color (blonde, brunette, redhead, or other)
Nominal data might have levels in
numbers… but no quantity.
Examples:
◦ Area code
◦ Number given to you to pin to your shirt for a race
◦ Numbers on the jerseys of baseball players
◦ Student ID numbers
Ordinal Scale
A researcher would have this scale as he/she might be
interested in the rank order or rating of the variable you are
measuring, or the sequence of events that took place.
Examples:
◦ Class rankings
◦ The order in which participants finished a task
◦ T-shirt sizes
◦ Months of the year
Interval Scale
With interval variables, the levels have meaningful order
and the space between each number on scale is equal.
Examples:
◦ Standardized test scores
◦ Temperature measured in Fahrenheit or Celsius
◦ Ratings using a scale of 1 to 7 to measure opinions
◦ IQ scores
◦ Personality measures
Ratio Scale
It includes an absolute zero point.
Examples:
◦ Balance in your checking account
◦ Exam scores (percent correct on the test)
◦ Age
◦ The number of times a person assists a stranger
◦ The amount of money given to a charity
◦ The amount of weight lost
What type of data did you collect?
1. The number of times a person assists a stranger
2. Social Security numbers
3. Socioeconomic status
4. Class size
5. Political opinion poll
6. College satisfaction scale
7. Intelligence test score
8. Banking account number
References
Kothari, C.R. (2004). Research Methodology. Jaipur: New Age International Limited
Petilos, G., (n.d.) Statistics: Concepts and Procedures. Leyte Normal University
Schwartz, B., Wilson, J., Goff, D. (2015) An Easy Guide to Research Design & SPSS. USA: SAGE
Publications, Inc.
Walliman, N. (2011). Research Methods: The Basics. New York, NY: Routledge