INDEPENDENT LEARNING SHEET 1

LEARNING COMPETENCIES:
• Illustrates a random variable (discrete and continuous). M11/12SP-IIIa-1
• Distinguishes between a discrete and a continuous random variable. M11/12SP-IIIa-2

LEARNING CONCEPTS:

LEVELS/SCALE OF MEASUREMENT FOR VARIABLES

QUALITATIVE/CATEGORICAL VARIABLES

(1) Nominal level of measurement arises when we have variables that are categorical and non-numeric or where the
numbers have no sense of ordering. As an example, consider the numbers on the uniforms of basketball players. Is
the player wearing a number 7 a worse player than the player wearing number 10? Maybe, or maybe not, but the
number on the uniform does not have anything to do with their performance. The numbers on the uniform merely
help identify the basketball player. Other examples of the variables measured at the nominal level include sex, marital
status, religious affiliation. For the study on the validity of the statement regarding effect of breakfast on school
performance, students who responded Yes to Question Number 1 can be coded 1 while those who responded No,
code 0 can be assigned. The numbers used are simply for numerical codes and cannot be used for ordering and any
mathematical computation.

(2) Ordinal level also deals with categorical variables like the nominal level, but in this level, ordering is important, that
is the values of the variable could be ranked. For the study on the validity of the statement regarding effect of
breakfast on school performance, students who had healthy breakfast can be coded 1, those who had unhealthy
breakfast as 2 while those who had no breakfast at all as 3. Using the codes the responses could be ranked. Thus,
the students who had a healthy breakfast are ranked first while those who had no breakfast at all are ranked last in
terms of having a healthy breakfast. The numerical codes here have a meaningful sense of ordering, unlike basketball
player uniforms, the numerical codes suggest that one student is having a healthier breakfast than another student.
Other examples of the ordinal scale include socio economic status (A to E, where A is wealthy, E is poor), difficulty of
questions in an exam (easy, medium difficult), rank in a contest (first place, second place, etc.), and perceptions in
Likert scales.

QUANTITATIVE/NUMERICAL VARIABLES

(3) Interval level tells us that one unit differs by a certain amount of degree from another unit. Knowing how much one
unit differs from another is an additional property of the interval level on top of having the properties possess by the
ordinal level. When measuring temperature in Celsius, a 10-degree difference has the same meaning anywhere along
the scale – the difference between 10 and 20 degrees Celsius is the same as between 80 and 90 centigrade. But we
cannot say that 80 degrees Celsius is twice as hot as 40 degrees Celsius since there is no true zero, but only an
arbitrary zero point. A measurement of 0 degrees Celsius does not reflect a true "lack of temperature." Thus, Celsius
scale is in interval level. Other example of a variable measure at the interval is the Intelligence Quotient (IQ) of a
person. We can tell not only which person ranks higher in IQ but also how much higher he or she ranks with another,
but zero IQ does not mean no intelligence. The students could also be classified or categorized according to their IQ
level. Hence, the IQ as measured in the interval level has also the properties of those measured in the ordinal as well
as those in the nominal level.

(4) Ratio level also tells us that one unit has so many times as much of the property as does another unit. The ratio level
possesses a meaningful (unique and non-arbitrary) absolute, fixed zero point, and allows all arithmetic operations.
The existence of the zero point is the only difference between ratio and interval level of measurement. Examples of
the ratio scale include mass, heights, weights, energy, and electric charge. With mass as an example, the difference
between 120 grams and 135 grams is 15 grams, and this is the same difference between 380 grams and 395 grams.
The level at any given point is constant, and a measurement of 0 reflects a complete lack of mass. Amount of money
is also at the ratio level. We can say that 2000 pesos is twice more than 1,000 pesos. In addition, money has a true
zero point: if you have zero money, this implies the absence of money. For the study on the validity of the statement
regarding effect of breakfast on school performance, the student’s score in the quiz is measured at the ratio level. A
score of zero implies that the student did not get a correct answer at all.

In summary, we have the following levels of measurement:

Level Property Basic Empirical Operation

Nominal No order, distance, or origin Determination of equivalence
Ordinal Has order but no distance or unique origin Determination of greater or lesser values
Interval Both with order and distance but no unique origin Determination of equality of intervals or difference
Ratio Has order, distance, and unique origin Determination of equality of ratios or means
 Directed Practice:
Using the data of the teachers in a particular school gathered by a market researcher company, identify the level of
measurement for each of the following variable.
1. highest educational attainment
2. predominant hair color
3. body temperature
4. civil status
5. brand of laundry soap being used
6. total household expenditures last month in pesos
7. number of children in a household
8. number of hours standing in queue while waiting to be served by a bank teller
9. amount spent on rice last week by a household
10. distance travelled by the teacher in going to school
11. time (in hours) consumed on Facebook on a particular day

See answers key at the end of the page.

INDEPENDENT TASK:
The following variables are included in a survey conducted among students in a certain school. Identify
the level of measurement for each of the variables:
_________1. number of family members who are working
_________2. ownership of a cell phone among family members
_________3. length (in minutes) of longest call made on each cell phone owned per month
_________4. ownership/rental of dwelling
_________5. amount spent in pesos on food in one week
_________6. occupation of household head
_________7. total family income
_________8. number of years of schooling of each family member
_________9. access of family members to social media
_________10. amount of time last week spent by each family member using the internet

(ratio) 11.
(ratio) 10.
Prepared by: (ratio) 9.
(ratio) 8.
MS. MARY GRACE BERMIDO BUCAD (ratio) 7.
Statistics and Probability Teacher (ratio) 6.
(nominal) 5.
(nominal) 4.
(interval) 3.
(nominal) 2.
(ordinal) 1.

Answers Key for Directed Practice