INST 381: Research Methods Fall 2010

Operationalizing Variables

A critical element of any social science research is how you operationalize your variables. To
“operationalize” means to transform concepts into variables that can be empirically measured or
observed.

We often assume that this will be easy, when it fact it can be very difficult. There are a number
of considerations you need to be aware of:

1) Does the way you operationalize your variable ensure the reliability of your
measures? This has two dimensions: First, your operational definition must be clear and
transparent so that anyone who follows you would get the same measures. Second, the
sources of your data should also be reliable (organizations that provide data should be
trustworthy and their data should be consistent, you should interview reliable people or
use a technique that allows for standardization, etc.).

2) Does the operationalization of your variable ensure the validity of your measures?
Regardless of how reliable your data are, you must always be sure they reflect the
underlying concept you are trying to measure or observe. Beyond just being aware of
this, you need to convincingly defend your choice of operationalization.

3) Is the way you operationalize your variable practical? The most sophisticated
operationalization fails if you do not have the resources to collect the data. This means
you may have to scale down your variable and/or concept. Two potential strategies are
substitution (use a different variable that gets at the same dimension) or division (focus
on one dimension of your concept).

Exercise:
Operationalize the following concepts into 2-3 different variables:

• economic development
• multicultural society
• quality of democracy
• competitive party system

Don’t just think about existing measures or sources of data. Instead, think about the ideal data or
procedure you would use to measure the underlying concept. This requires being clear about the
underlying concept itself, and any built-in assumptions.