Rating Scales and Checklists: Evaluating Behavior, Personality, and Attitudes

"The philosopher Immanuel Kant believed that psychology could never become a science, because science is concerned with objectively observable phenomena and psychology deals with subjective matters. It is often maintained that the research of Gustav Fechner, Francis Galton, and other pioneers in psychometrics refuted Kant's assertion—and so it may be. However, it would be foolish to claim that psychologists are 'out of the woods' in maintaining that their discipline is a science. The subject matter of psychology still entails human judgment and evaluation, and our ultimate measuring instrument is the brain itself. We may try to make those judgments more objective by operationally defining what we are looking for, by training observers or evaluators to be more aware of their personal biases and their limited abilities to make accurate judgments, and by developing measuring instruments that are easy to use and reliable and valid indices of whatever we want them to assess. Still, it is not an easy task, and there are many critiques of our attempts at science-making.

"This book focuses on rating scales and their derivatives—checklists, rankings, attitude scales, inventories, and other psychometric devices and procedures designed to make the assessment of people, objects, and events more objective and meaningful." — Lewis R. Aiken

In the late 1900s Charles Darwin's cousin, Sir Francis Galton, introduced what is now considered the first rating scale. Over the next several decades various landmark tests appeared—most notably, the Binet-Simon, Army Alpha and Beta, Rorschach, and TAT tests. With the outbreak of World War II and the U.S. War Department's large-scale investment in the development of reliable instruments with which to measure inductees' personalities and aptitudes for various tasks, rating scales and checklists came into their own. Since then, rating scales have been used regularly in government, education, and industry, and an array of "paper and pencil" tests has been developed to quantify and qualify people's attitudes, aptitudes, performances, and personalities.

Rating Scales and Checklists is the first comprehensive guide to constructing, scoring, validating, and applying these potent investigative and diagnostic tools. Written by a well-known authority in the field, it provides many valuable insights into the theoretical/psychometric aspects of measurement and scaling, as well as helpful practical guidelines for test construction and administration in a wide range of research and applied situations. In addition, the enclosed DOS-formatted computer diskette contains several dozen programs concerned with the construction, analysis, and applications of checklists, rating scales, attitude scales, and other psychometric instruments accompanying the text.

The first four chapters, which constitute the conceptual core of the book, deal extensively with the underlying theory and design of rating scales and checklists. The focus then shifts to the individual instruments and their applications in a wide range of specific areas. Descriptive lists of standardized and nonstandardized rating scales, checklists, and attitude scales are supplied, and Dr. Aiken provides expert insights and suggestions on how best to evaluate and improve the psychometric characteristics of these instruments. He also offers many valuable insights into the advantages and shortcomings of psychological, social, and educational measurement by means of rating scales, checklists, and attitude scales.

Rating Scales and Checklists is an important tool for practitioners in the behavioral and social sciences as well as for market research professionals, attitude and product researchers, and political pollsters. It is also an excellent supplemental text for upper level courses in psychology, education, sociology, political science, and other related disciplines.

LEWIS R. AIKEN, PhD, is Professor of Psychology at Pepperdine University. He received his doctorate in psychometrics from the University of North Carolina. His other books include Assessment of Intellectual Functioning, Personality Assessment Methods and Practices, and Psychological Testing and Assessment, Eighth Edition.