Levels of Measurement

1. Nominal Scales

Nominal scales contain the least amount of information. In nominal scales, the
numbers assigned to each variable or observation are only used to classify the
variable or observation.

2. Ordinal Scales

Ordinal scales present more information than nominal scales and are, therefore,
a higher level of measurement. In ordinal scales, there is an ordered relationship
between the variable’s observations.

3. Interval Scales

Interval scales present more information than ordinal scales, in that they provide
assurance that the differences between values are equal. In other words, interval
scales are ordinal scales but with equivalent scale values from low to high
interval.

4. Ration Scales

Ratio scales are the most informative scales. Ratio scales provide rankings,
assure equal differences between scale values, and have a true zero point. In
essence, a ratio scale can be thought of as nominal, ordinal, and interval scales
combined as one.