From EvaluationWiki
Selection of Response Alternatives Using Scale Values and Standard Deviations
Using scale values and standard deviations to select response
alternatives will give a more refined set of phrases than using an order of
merit list. In general, response alternatives selected from lists of phrases
with scale values should usually have the following characteristics:
- The scale values of the terms should be as far apart as possible.
- The scale values of the terms should be as equally distant as possible.
- The terms should have small variability (small standard deviations or interquartile ranges).
- Other things being equal, the terms should have parallel wording.
Acceptability Phrases[1]
| Phrase | Average | Std. Dev.
|
| Excellent | 6.27 | 0.54
|
| Perfect in every respect | 6.22 | 0.86
|
| Extremely good | 5.74 | 0.81
|
| Very good | 5.19 | 0.75
|
| Unusually good | 5.03 | 0.98
|
| Very good in most respects | 4.62 | 0.72
|
| Good | 4.25 | 0.90
|
| Moderately good | 3.58 | 0.77
|
| Could use some minor changes | 3.28 | 1.09
|
| Not good enough for extreme conditions | 3.10 | 1.30
|
| Not good for rough use | 2.72 | 1.15
|
| Not very good | 2.10 | 0.95
|
| Needs major changes | 1.97 | 1.12
|
| Barely acceptable | 1.79 | 0.90
|
| Not good enough for general use | 1.76 | 1.21
|
| Better than nothing | 1.22 | 1.08
|
| Poor | 1.06 | 1.11
|
| Very poor | 0.76 | 0.95
|
| Extremely poor | 0.36 | 0.76
|
Degrees of Excellence: First Set[2]
| Phrase | Scale Value | Std. Dev.
|
| Exceptionally good | 18.55 | 2.36
|
| Extremely good | 18.44 | 1.61
|
| Unusually good | 17.08 | 2.43
|
| Remarkably good | 16.68 | 2.19
|
| Very good | 15.44 | 2.75
|
| Quite good | 14.44 | 2.76
|
| Good | 14.32 | 2.08
|
| Moderately good | 13.44 | 2.23
|
| Reasonably good | 12.92 | 2.93
|
| Fairly good | 11.96 | 2.42
|
| Slightly good | 11.84 | 2.19
|
| So-so | 10.08 | 1.87
|
| Not very much | 6.72 | 2.82
|
| Moderately poor | 6.44 | 1.64
|
| Reasonably poor | 6.32 | 2.46
|
| Slightly poor | 5.92 | 1.36
|
| Poor | 5.72 | 2.09
|
| Fairly poor | 5.64 | 1.68
|
| Quite poor | 4.80 | 1.44
|
| Unusually poor | 3.20 | 1.44
|
| Very poor | 3.12 | 1.17
|
| Remarkably poor | 2.88 | 1.74
|
| Exceptionally poor | 2.52 | 1.19
|
| Extremely poor | 2.08 | 1.19
|
Degrees of Good and Bad[3]
| Phrase | Scale Value
|
| Extremely good | 3.449
|
| Very good | 3.250
|
| Unusually good | 3.243
|
| Decidedly good | 3.024
|
| Quite good | 2.880
|
| Rather good | 2.755
|
| Good | 2.712
|
| Pretty good | 2.622
|
| Somewhat good | 2.462
|
| Slightly good | 2.417
|
| Slightly bad | 1.497
|
| Somewhat bad | 1.323
|
| Rather bad | 1.232
|
| Bad | 1.024
|
| Pretty bad | 1.018
|
| Quite bad | 0.924
|
| Decidedly bad | 0.797
|
| Unusually bad | 0.662
|
| Very bad | 0.639
|
| Extremely bad | 0.470
|
Degrees of Agree and Disagree[4]
| Phase | Mean | Std. Dev.
|
| Decidedly agree | 2.77 | .41
|
| Quite agree | 2.37 | .49
|
| Considerably agree | 2.21 | .42
|
| Substantially agree | 2.10 | .50
|
| Moderately agree | 1.47 | .41
|
| Somewhat agree | .94 | .41
|
| Slightly agree | .67 | .36
|
| Perhaps agree | .52 | .46
|
| Perhaps disagree | -.43 | .45
|
| Slightly disagree | -.64 | .38
|
| Somewhat disagree | -.98 | .47
|
| Moderately disagree | -1.35 | .42
|
| Quite disagree | -2.16 | .57
|
| Substantially disagree | -2.17 | .51
|
| Considerably disagree | -2.17 | .45
|
| Decidedly disagree | -2.76 | .43
|
Degrees of More and Less[5]
| Phrase | Scale Value | Interquartile Range
|
| Very much more | 8.02 | 0.61
|
| Much more | 7.67 | 1.04
|
| A lot more | 7.50 | 1.06
|
| A good deal more | 7.29 | 0.98
|
| More | 6.33 | 1.01
|
| Somewhat more | 6.25 | 0.98
|
| A little more | 6.00 | 0.58
|
| Slightly more | 5.99 | 0.57
|
| Slightly less | 3.97 | 0.56
|
| A little less | 3.96 | 0.54
|
| Less | 3.64 | 1.04
|
| Much less | 2.55 | 1.06
|
| A good deal less | 2.44 | 1.11
|
| A lot less | 2.36 | 1.03
|
| Very much less | 1.96 | 0.52
|
Degrees of Adequate and Inadequate[6]
| Phrase | Mean | Std. Dev.
|
| Totally adequate | 4.620 | .846
|
| Absolutely adequate | 4.540 | .921
|
| Completely adequate | 4.490 | .825
|
| Extremely adequate | 4.412 | .719
|
| Exceptionally adequate | 4.380 | .869
|
| Entirely adequate | 4.340 | .863
|
| Wholly adequate | 4.314 | 1.038
|
| Fully adequate | 4.294 | .914
|
| Very, very adequate | 4.063 | .876
|
| Perfectly adequate | 3.922 | 1.026
|
| Highly adequate | 3.843 | .606
|
| Most adequate | 3.843 | .978
|
| Very adequate | 3.420 | .851
|
| Decidedly adequate | 3.140 | 1.536
|
| Considerably adequate | 3.020 | .874
|
| Quite adequate | 2.980 | .979
|
| Largely adequate | 2.863 | .991
|
| Substantially adequate | 2.608 | 1.030
|
| Reasonably adequate | 2.412 | .771
|
| Pretty adequate | 2.306 | .862
|
| Rather adequate | 1.755 | .893
|
| Mildly adequate | 1.571 | .670
|
| Somewhat adequate | 1.327 | .793
|
| Slightly adequate | 1.200 | .566
|
| Barely adequate | 0.627 | .928
|
| Neutral | 0.000 | .000
|
| Borderline | -.020 | .316
|
| Barely inadequate | -1.157 | .638
|
| Mildly inadequate | -1.353 | .621
|
| Slightly inadequate | -1.380 | .772
|
| Somewhat inadequate | -1.882 | .732
|
| Rather inadequate | -2.102 | .974
|
| Moderately inadequate | -2.157 | 1.017
|
| Fairly inadequate | -2.216 | .800
|
| Pretty inadequate | -2.347 | .959
|
| Considerably inadequate | -3.600 | .680
|
| Very inadequate | -3.735 | .777
|
| Decidedly inadequate | -3.780 | .944
|
| Most inadequate | -3.980 | 1.545
|
| Highly inadequate | -4.196 | .741
|
| Very, very inadequate | -4.460 | .537
|
| Extremely inadequate | -4.608 | .527
|
| Fully inadequate | -4.667 | .676
|
| Exceptionally inadequate | -4.680 | .508
|
| Wholly inadequate | -4.784 | .498
|
| Entirely inadequate | -4.792 | .644
|
| Completely inadequate | -4.800 | .529
|
| Absolutely inadequate | -4.800 | .431
|
| Totally inadequate | -4.900 | .412
|
Degrees of Acceptable and Unacceptable[6]
| Phrase | Mean | Std. Dev.
|
| Wholly acceptable | 4.725 | .563
|
| Completely acceptable | 4.686 | .610
|
| Fully acceptable | 4.412 | .867
|
| Extremely acceptable | 4.392 | .716
|
| Most acceptable | 4.157 | .915
|
| Very, very acceptable | 4.157 | .825
|
| Highly acceptable | 4.040 | .631
|
| Quite acceptable | 3.216 | .956
|
| Largely acceptable | 3.137 | .991
|
| Acceptable | 2.392 | 1.456
|
| Reasonably acceptable | 2.294 | .722
|
| Moderately acceptable | 2.280 | .722
|
| Pretty acceptable | 2.000 | 1.125
|
| Rather acceptable | 1.939 | .818
|
| Fairly acceptable | 1.840 | .924
|
| Mildly acceptable | 1.686 | .700
|
| Somewhat acceptable | 1.458 | 1.241
|
| Barely acceptable | 1.078 | .518
|
| Slightly acceptable | 1.039 | .522
|
| Sort of acceptable | 0.940 | .645
|
| Borderline | 0.000 | .200
|
| Neutral | 0.000 | 0.000
|
| Marginal | -.120 | .515
|
| Barely unacceptable | -1.100 | .300
|
| Slightly unacceptable | -1.255 | .589
|
| Somewhat unacceptable | -1.765 | .674
|
| Rather unacceptable | -2.020 | .836
|
| Fairly unacceptable | -2.160 | .880
|
| Moderately unacceptable | -2.340 | .681
|
| Pretty unacceptable | -2.412 | .662
|
| Reasonably unacceptable | -2.440 | .753
|
| Unacceptable | -2.667 | 1.381
|
| Substantially unacceptable | -3.235 | .899
|
| Quite unacceptable | -3.388 | 1.066
|
| Largely unacceptable | -3.392 | .818
|
| Considerably unacceptable | -3.440 | .779
|
| Notably unacceptable | -3.500 | 1.044
|
| Decidedly unacceptable | -3.837 | 1.017
|
| Highly unacceptable | -4.294 | .535
|
| Most unacceptable | -4.420 | .724
|
| Very, very unacceptable | -4.490 | .500
|
| Exceptionally unacceptable | -4.540 | .607
|
| Extremely unacceptable | -4.686 | .464
|
| Completely unacceptable | -4.900 | .361
|
| Entirely unacceptable | -4.900 | .361
|
| Wholly unacceptable | -4.922 | .269
|
| Absolutely unacceptable | -4.922 | .334
|
| Totally unacceptable | -4.941 | .235
|
Comparison Phrases[6]
| Phrase | Mean | Std. Dev.
|
| Best of all | 4.896 | .510
|
| Absolutely best | 4.843 | .459
|
| Truly best | 4.600 | .721
|
| Undoubtedly best | 4.569 | .823
|
| Decidedly best | 4.373 | .839
|
| Best | 4.216 | 1.459
|
| Absolutely better | 4.060 | .988
|
| Extremely better | 3.922 | .882
|
| Substantially better | 3.700 | .922
|
| Decidedly better | 3.412 | .933
|
| Conspicuously better | 3.059 | .802
|
| Moderately better | 2.255 | .737
|
| Somewhat better | 1.834 | .801
|
| Rather better | 1.816 | .719
|
| Slightly better | 1.157 | .776
|
| Barely better | 0.961 | .656
|
| Absolutely alike | 0.538 | 1.623
|
| Alike | 0.216 | .847
|
| The same | 0.157 | .801
|
| Neutral | 0.000 | 0.000
|
| Borderline | -0.061 | .314
|
| Marginal | -0.184 | .919
|
| Barely worse | -1.039 | .816
|
| Slightly worse | -1.216 | .498
|
| Somewhat worse | -2.078 | .860
|
| Moderately worse | -2.220 | .944
|
| Noticeably worse | -2.529 | 1.030
|
| Worse | -2.667 | 1.423
|
| Notably worse | -3.020 | 1.038
|
| Largely worse | -3.216 | 1.108
|
| Considerably worse | -3.275 | 1.206
|
| Conspicuously worse | -3.275 | .887
|
| Much worse | -3.286 | .808
|
| Substantially worse | -3.460 | .899
|
| Decidedly worse | -3.760 | .907
|
| Very much worse | -3.941 | .752
|
| Absolutely worse | -4.431 | .823
|
| Decidedly worst | -4.431 | .748
|
| Undoubtedly worst | -4.510 | .872
|
| Absolutely worst | -4.686 | 1.291
|
| Worst of all | -4.776 | 1.298
|
Degrees of Satisfactory and Unsatisfactory[1]
| Phrase | Scale Value | Std. Dev.
|
| Quite satisfactory | 4.35 | .95
|
| Satisfactory | 3.69 | .87
|
| Not very satisfactory | 2.11 | .76
|
| Unsatisfactory but usable | 2.00 | .87
|
| Very unsatisfactory | 0.69 | 1.32
|
Degrees of Unsatisfactory[7]
| Phrase | Scale Value
|
| Unsatisfactory | 1.47
|
| Quite unsatisfactory | 1.00
|
| Very unsatisfactory | 0.75
|
| Unusually unsatisfactory | 0.75
|
| Highly unsatisfactory | 0.71
|
| Very, very unsatisfactory | 0.25
|
| Extremely unsatisfactory | 0.10
|
| Completely unsatisfactory | 0.00
|
Degrees of Pleasant[3]
| Phrase | Scale Value
|
| Extremely pleasant | 3.490
|
| Very pleasant | 3.174
|
| Unusually pleasant | 3.107
|
| Decidedly pleasant | 3.028
|
| Quite Pleasant | 2.849
|
| Pleasant | 2.770
|
| Rather pleasant | 2.743
|
| Pretty pleasant | 2.738
|
| Somewhat pleasant | 2.505
|
| Slightly pleasant | 2.440
|
Degrees of Agreeable[7]
| Phrase | Scale Value
|
| Very, very agreeable | 5.34
|
| Extremely agreeable | 5.10
|
| Highly agreeable | 5.02
|
| Completely agreeable | 4.96
|
| Unusually agreeable | 4.86
|
| Very agreeable | 4.82
|
| Quite agreeable | 4.45
|
| Agreeable | 4.19
|
Degrees of Desirable[7]
| Phrase | Scale Value
|
| Very, very desirable | 5.66
|
| Extremely desirable | 5.42
|
| Completely desirable | 5.38
|
| Unusually desirable | 5.23
|
| Highly desirable | 5.25
|
| Very desirable | 4.96
|
| Quite desirable | 4.76
|
| Desirable | 4.50
|
Degrees of Nice
| Phrase | Scale Value
|
| Extremely nice | 3.351
|
| Unusually nice | 3.155
|
| Very nice | 3.016
|
| Decidedly nice | 2.969
|
| Pretty nice | 2.767
|
| Quite nice | 2.738
|
| Nice | 2.636
|
| Rather nice | 2.568
|
| Somewhat nice | 2.488
|
| Slightly nice | 2.286
|
Degrees of Adequate[1]
| Phrase | Scale Value | Std. Dev.
|
| More than adequate | 4.13 | 1.11
|
| Adequate | 3.39 | .87
|
| Not quite adequate | 2.40 | .85
|
| Barely adequate | 2.10 | .84
|
| Not adequate | 1.83 | .98
|
Degrees of Ordinary[3]
| Phrase | Scale Value
|
| Ordinary | 2.074
|
| Very ordinary | 2.073
|
| Somewhat ordinary | 2.038
|
| Rather ordinary | 2.934
|
| Pretty ordinary | 2.026
|
| Slightly ordinary | 1.980
|
| Decidedly ordinary | 1.949
|
| Extremely ordinary | 1.936
|
| Unusually ordinary | 1.875
|
Degrees of Average[3]
| Phrase | Scale Value
|
| Rather average | 2.172
|
| Average | 2.145
|
| Quite average | 2.101
|
| Pretty average | 2.094
|
| Somewhat average | 2.080
|
| Unusually average | 2.062
|
| Extremely average | 2.052
|
| Very average | 2.039
|
| Slightly average | 2.023
|
| Decidedly average | 2.020
|
Degrees of Hesitation[5]
| Phrase | Scale Value | Interquartile Range
|
| Without hesitation | 7.50 | 6.54
|
| With little hesitation | 5.83 | 3.40
|
| Hesitant | 4.77 | 1.06
|
| With some hesitation | 4.38 | 1.60
|
| With considerable hesitation | 3.29 | 3.39
|
| With much hesitation | 3.20 | 5.25
|
| With great hesitation | 2.41 | 6.00
|
Degrees of Inferior[3]
| Phrase | Scale Value
|
| Slightly inferior | 1.520
|
| Somewhat inferior | 1.516
|
| Inferior | 1.323
|
| Rather inferior | 1.295
|
| Pretty inferior | 1.180
|
| Quite inferior | 1.127
|
| Decidedly inferior | 1.013
|
| Unusually inferior | 0.963
|
| Very inferior | 0.927
|
| Extremely inferior | 0.705
|
Degrees of Poor[7]
| Phrase | Scale Value
|
| Poor | 1.60
|
| Quite poor | 1.30
|
| Very poor | 1.18
|
| Unusually poor | 0.95
|
| Extremely poor | 0.95
|
| Completely poor | 0.92
|
| Very, very poor | 0.55
|
Descriptive Phrases[5]
| Phrase | Scale Value | Interquartile Range
|
| Complete | 8.85 | .65
|
| Extremely vital | 8.79 | .84
|
| Very certain | 8.55 | 1.05
|
| Very strongly | 8.40 | 1.04
|
| Very critical | 8.29 | 1.12
|
| Very important | 8.22 | 1.16
|
| Very sure | 8.15 | .95
|
| Almost complete | 8.06 | .58
|
| Of great importance | 8.05 | .91
|
| Very urgent | 8.00 | .90
|
| Feel strongly toward | 7.80 | 1.60
|
| Essential | 7.58 | 1.85
|
| Very vital | 7.55 | 1.05
|
| Certain | 7.13 | 1.44
|
| Strongly | 7.07 | .67
|
| Important | 6.83 | 1.14
|
| Good | 6.72 | 1.20
|
| Urgent | 6.41 | 1.53
|
| Crucial | 6.39 | 1.73
|
| Sure | 5.93 | 1.87
|
| Vital | 5.92 | 1.63
|
| Moderately | 5.24 | .99
|
| Now | 5.03 | .53
|
| As at present | 5.00 | .50
|
| Fair | 4.96 | .77
|
| Don't know | 4.82 | .82
|
| Undecided | 4.73 | 1.06
|
| Don't care | 4.63 | 2.00
|
| Somewhat | 3.79 | .94
|
| Indifferent | 3.70 | 2.20
|
| Object strongly to | 3.50 | 6.07
|
| Not important | 3.09 | 1.33
|
| Unimportant | 2.94 | 1.42
|
| Bad | 2.89 | .93
|
| Uncertain | 2.83 | 2.50
|
| Doesn't make any difference | 2.83 | 3.13
|
| Not sure | 2.82 | 1.24
|
| Not certain | 2.64 | 2.62
|
| Non-essential | 2.58 | 1.67
|
| Doesn't mean anything | 2.50 | 2.71
|
| Insignificant | 2.12 | 1.14
|
| Very little | 2.08 | .64
|
| Almost none | 2.04 | .57
|
| Very unimportant | 1.75 | 1.25
|
| Only as a last resort | 1.70 | 7.30
|
| Very bad | 1.50 | 1.13
|
| None | 1.11 | .59
|
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command (1973). Development of a Guide and Checklist for Human Factors Evaluation of Army Equipment and Systems, U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command (TECOM), Contract DAADO5-73-C-0388.
- ↑ Myers, J. H., & Warner, W. G. (1968). Semantic Properties of Selected Evaluation Adjectives. Journal of Marketing Research, 5, pp 409-412.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Cliff, N. (1959). Adverbs As Multipliers. Psychological Review, 66, pp 27-44.
- ↑ Altemeyer, R. A. (1970). Adverbs and Intervals: A Study of Likert Scales. American Psychological Association, Proceedings of the Annual Convention of 1970, S (pt. 1) pp 397-398.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Dodd, S. C., & Gerberick, T. R. (1960). Word Scales for Degrees of Opinion. Language and Speech, 3, pp 18-31.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Matthews, J. J., Wright, C. E., & Yudowitch, K. L. (1975) Analysis of the Results of the Administration of Three Sets of Descriptive Adjective Phrases. Palo Alto: Operations Research Associates (prepared for the U.S. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences, Fort Hood, Texas under Contract DAHC19-74-C-0032)
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Mosier, C. I. (1941). A Psychometric Study of Meaning. Journal of Social Psychology, 13, pp 23-140.
