Attitude Analysis

For this assignment I chose to analyze the Likert Scale and Visually-Oriented Scales for their benefits and disadvantages. These two scales seemed to cover a wide range of options when it comes to gauging attitudes about a variety of topics.

The major benefits of the Likert Scale in measuring attitudes is that is gives a little more insight into the beliefs beyond a simple yes or no. These scales are the most widely and commonly used scales. In the Likert Scale model a question or phrase is presented with an accompanying rating scale to the survey respondent who will indicate their degree of agreement or disagreement. The scale comes across as both user friendly and not extremely committal to one end of the spectrum or another, which satisfies responders since it allows for a wide range of 5-7 selections along a grading scale. These large breadths of ratings actually benefit the tallying of results and further analysis of the survey data since mathematically they can add up quickly and be segmented later on. Likert Scale surveys are also the least expensive to distribute and can be distributed in person, in print or online.

One example of a modern day Likert Scale is online product reviews. Through online ratings and reviews a consumer can provide their experience with a product or service to help other consumers decide if they should buy. The ratings are based on the product or service group and can be specific to that industry. For instance, outdoor power tool manufacturer STIHL Inc. (www.STIHLusa.com) includes the following ratings options for their chainsaws; power, dependability, quality, and value. The scores of the results are tallied and the customer’s feedback ultimately rates a product from one to five stars.

There are also disadvantages of the scale such as what attitudes fall in between each degree of the ranking. A truer answer may lie in those spaces in between each options and not just be easily determined by the respondent in a 5-7 selection answer. Responses can also be predetermined to a degree by any bias or belief the respondent may bring with them to the survey. Cultural norms for certain societies may not allow for public disagreement and this could impact the respondents ultimate answer selection.

Through the Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM), the Likert Scale used in product ratings and reviews effects the potential customer who reads reviews before making a purchase decision to help determine if the item is worth it or not. At the same time, the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA) would influence the answers that the initial reviewer gave through their normative beliefs, as they may want to appear more experienced with a particular than they actually are to impress readers of their review.

The second scale analyzed is the Visually-Oriented Scale. This type of scale uses visual images to depict different response options to a question or phrase. A large advantage of any visually-oriented scale is that is removes any language barriers that might be in place as the illustrative options are universally recognized, therefore many people will be comfortable using them without much explanation.

An example of a visually-oriented scale is a body type scale. Showing a body figure in various shapes communicates size to the audience. This might be something shown on a clothing retailer’s communication materials to help show which body types work best with different pieces of apparel.

Unfortunately, this type of scale can also backfire in that one can infer their appearance to be different than reality in the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA). A level of psychological discomfort between those two spaces can have a negative impact on the final outcome.

When reflecting on the assignment and study material for this post, there is just an overwhelming amount of inputs from culture, history, society and family that sway attitudes people apply to different areas of life. It is a complex pattern to decipher in order to help determine behavior and how that behavior is interpreted and what changes could be made to alter a behavior or attitude.