Bipolar Rating Scales Research Articles

Introducing the trier univalence neutrality ambivalence (TUNA) database: A picture database differentiating complex attitudes.

Using validated stimulus material is crucial for ensuring research comparability and replicability. However, many databases rely solely on bidimensional valence ratings, ranging from negative to positive. While this material might be appropriate for certain studies, it does not reflect the complexity of attitudes and therefore might hamper the unambiguous interpretation of some study results. In fact, most databases cannot differentiate between neutral (i.e., neither positive nor negative) and ambivalent (i.e., simultaneously positive and negative) attitudes. Consequently, even presumably univalent (only positive or negative) stimuli cannot be clearly distinguished from ambivalent ones when selected via bipolar rating scales. In the present research, we introduce the Trier Univalence Neutrality Ambivalence (TUNA) database, a database containing 304,262 validation ratings from heterogeneous samples of 3,232 participants and at least 20 (M = 27.3, SD = 4.84) ratings per self-report scale per picture for a variety of attitude objects on split semantic differential scales. As these scales measure positive and negative evaluations independently, the TUNA database allows to distinguish univalence, neutrality, and ambivalence (i.e., potential ambivalence). TUNA also goes beyond previous databases by validating the stimulus materials on affective outcomes such as experiences of conflict (i.e., felt ambivalence), arousal, anger, disgust, and empathy. The TUNA database consists of 796 pictures and is compatible with other popular databases. It sets a focus on food pictures in various forms (e.g., raw vs. cooked, non-processed vs. highly processed), but includes pictures of other objects that are typically used in research to study univalent (e.g., flowers) and ambivalent (e.g., money, cars) attitudes for comparison. Furthermore, to facilitate the stimulus selection the TUNA database has an accompanying desktop app that allows easy stimulus selection via a multitude of filter options.

Verbalization of Rating Scales Taking Account of Their Polarity

While numerical bipolar rating scales may evoke positivity bias, little is known about the corresponding bias in verbal bipolar rating scales. The choice of verbalization of the middle category may lead to response bias, particularly if it is not in line with the scale polarity. Unipolar and bipolar seven-category rating scales in which the verbalizations of the middle categories matched or did not match the implemented polarity were investigated in randomized experiments using a non-probabilistic online access panel in Germany. Bipolar rating scales exhibited higher positivity bias and acquiescence than unipolar rating scales. Reliability, validity, and equidistance tended to be violated if the verbalizations of the middle category did not match scale polarity. The results provide a rationale for rating scale verbalization.

Exploring psychophysical measurement in landscape aesthetics: Validity, reliability and signal detection via single-versus opposing-construct rating scales, with or without zeros

Surveys eliciting qualitative judgments of environments might have an objective psychophysical basis. They can employ numeric, single-construct, integer rating scales or ratio scales between opposing negative and positive end-point constructs. Each stimulus can be measured by different ‘averaging’ methods across subjects' ratings. The impacts of these choices on data reliability and validity were investigated. Three different rating scales were presented to different sets of subjects who rated the same stimuli. Eighty photos of various forests and timber harvests were rated for (1) scenic beauty on a 1 to 10 scale, (2) ugliness or scenic beauty on a −5 to +5 scale, or (3) the same bipolar scale but without a central zero value. Ratings from each photo from one rating scale were averaged and ‘averaged’ again by the Scenic Beauty Estimate (SBE) signal detection algorithm. Distributions of the raw and averaged ratings were examined to explore validity by conformance with psychophysical theory. Ratings from the bipolar scale without a zero exhibited the most evidence of validity across a wider range, indicating that it best conformed with discrimination of photos' perceived beauty and ugliness along a shared, psychophysical gradient. Averaged ratings from the 1 to 10 scale produced the most reliable data, while its SBEs were slightly less reliable but with more stable errors. These ratings exhibited poor validity among low-beauty photos The bipolar rating scale that included a zero value was least reliable and valid, particularly across its ratio SBEs. All rating scales' average ratings or SBEs exhibited acceptable reliability.

Субъективное качество времени как объект психологической диагностики

The paper is focused at the development and validation of a psychometric scale of the subjective quality of time. The subjective quality of time is the measure of fullness with which one can experience a certain period of time, or the time associated with certain activity. Based on this, we aimed to develop a scale for measuring the subjective quality of time. The original version of the scale included 15 bipolar rating scales. In the process of testing and improving the psychometric characteristics of the inventory, the number of scales was reduced to 5. The one-factor model for 5 statements showed an acceptable fit to the data (multigroup model in Mplus 8.4, MLR statistic: X2(20) = 36.10, p = 0.015, CFI = 0.963, RMSEA = 0.089, 90% CI [0.039; 0.134], SRMR = 0.036). The reliability of the scale (Cronbach's alpha) ranged from 0.79 to 0.87 in different samples. Several studies have focused on the construct validity of the new measure. In the study about the characteristics of self-regulation of hatha yoga practitioners, the assessment of the quality of time of yoga practice was significantly higher than the assessment of the quality of time for filling out questionnaires (Student's t-test: p<0.001; d = 1.22). In another study of psychological and behavioral responses to the Covid-19 pandemic, the scale of the subjective quality of time was offered to a sample of students as part of a set of measures. As we expected, against the background of the unfolding pandemic, assessment of the quality of time for the last month was significantly lower than for the previous year. It also significantly correlated with other indicators of subjective well-being. There were no significant links between the assessment of the quality of time over the past month and over the past year with emotions and fears caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Thus, the developed time quality scale has good psychometric characteristics and is suitable, among other things, for mass monitoring surveys

Behavior as a stereotype cue: An European Portuguese pretest on age and gender stereotypes

When it comes to the study of stereotypes, plenty of material can be of use. While personality traits tend to be the most commonly adopted, behavioral information can also be relevant, both in the study of stereotypes, as well as in other research fields (e.g., illusory correlations, memory and judgement and decision making). The purpose of this paper was to create a readily available list of behavioral sentences with stereotypicality ratings for both age (young to old) and gender (woman to man) categories, to be used in future studies. In two studies, participants judged age and gender stereotypicality of more than two hundred sentences in European Portuguese. Results were stable across both studies, using different methodologies (three alternative forced-choice task, in Study 1; bipolar rating scale, in Study 2). Relative frequencies for each choice, as well as average ratings, per behavior, are provided at the end.

18. EFFECTIVENESS AND PERCEPTIONS OF FLIPPED CLASSROOMS WITHIN A PEDIATRIC RESIDENCY

Objective Flipped classroom (FC) curricula, in which learners review material independently prior to in-person sessions that employ active learning strategies, are increasingly being used in medical schools but have not been widely implemented in residency programs. We examined feasibility, knowledge acquisition, and learner perceptions of FC modules within a pediatric clinic. Methods Authors created 4 FC modules on common pediatric topics and lectures covering equivalent content. From Jan-Jun 2019, these modules and lectures were incorporated into morning didactics at an outpatient clinic using a crossover design, such that 2 topics were covered as an FC module and 2 as a lecture one month, then flipping the delivery method for each topic the following month. Residents completed 10-item pre-tests prior to participation in each FC session or lecture and post-tests following. Pre- to post-scores were compared using t-tests, and average change in pre- to post-test score for all FC sessions versus all lectures was compared using a Mann-Whitney U test. Residents completed a 6-item immediate perception survey after participation in each FC session and a final 10-item survey on overall perceptions of the FC model as compared to lectures at the end of each monthly block. Results 36 residents participated. Residents scored significantly higher on post-tests than pre-tests for all modules regardless of instructional method, except for the knee pain FC module (Figure 1). The average improvement in pre- to post-test score between all FC sessions (2.1 points) and traditional lectures (2.4 points) was not different (U=7.0, n=4, p=.44). Residents found FC pre-readings (4.0) and in-person sessions (4.1) useful for learning and reported high overall satisfaction with the FC model (4.0) on a 5-point rating scale. They favored FC sessions over lectures with respect to engagement (4.3), learning effectiveness (3.9), application to clinical practice (3.9), and overall preference (3.9) on a bipolar rating scale (1=strongly prefer lecture, 5=strongly prefer FC). Conclusion Flipped classroom modules within a pediatric clinic resulted in similar knowledge gains to lectures but were preferred by residents.

BiCo: a bipolar continuous rating scale for children’s technology evaluation

ABSTRACTOne challenge of child–computer interaction research is surveying variation of children’s attitudes towards novel educational technology, which often results in an opinion ceiling effect. In this article, the authors introduce BiCo – a bipolar continuous rating scale which builds on children’s ability to draw relative comparisons. They elaborate on the development of BiCo and on how they designed it to better survey children’s attitudes. Beyond addressing the opinion ceiling effect, BiCo is suitable for surveying a wide range of concepts and its invertible design enables simulation of inverted items. The authors provide data comparing BiCo with the widely used Smileyometer instrument when used by fourth-graders (around 10 years old), demonstrating that BiCo mitigates the opinion ceiling effect. They discuss BiCo as a new tool for children’s technology evaluation and provide directions for future research.

What do laboratory preference tests tell us about real life (operational) preferences: A preliminary investigation

In Part 1, 115 consumers were required to perform actionable ‘choosing’ preference tests which included ‘no preference’ options, between original and barbecue flavored cassava chips, in laboratory conditions. Double-DTM preference tests, ‘Strict’ paired preference tests (only choose A, never choose B), and ‘Lenient’ paired preference tests (choose A more than B) were used. In Part 2, consumers were required to indicate which of the two chips they would choose if presented with both, in real life conditions, on nine testing weeks during the following three months. Real life conditions present different extraneous variables. Considering the sample of consumers as a whole, a slight preference for the original flavored chips noted in all three tests in Part 1 was continued for all nine testing weeks in Part 2. Considering individual consumers, the largest group continued to choose the chips they had chosen in Part 1 for all nine testing weeks. The second largest group changed their preference in the first week and then stayed constant for the following eight weeks. This could suggest that a change in extraneous variables might be a trigger for preference change. Considering only consumers who changed their preferences, the majority changed between 1 and 3 times. The tendency for change was low. Consumers who had declared ‘no preference’ changed to exhibit preference behavior. A fourth preference test method was used in Part 1. This was a numerical bipolar rating scale for likelihood to choose. However, it lacked sufficient precision in its predictions for any usefulness.

Bipolar Rating Scales: A Survey and Novel Correlation Measures Based on Nonlinear Bipolar Scoring Functions

Bipolar Rating Scales: A Survey and Novel Correlation Measures Based on Nonlinear Bipolar Scoring Functions

Scale Effects in Moral Relevance Assessment.

Research on moral judgment often employs bipolar rating scales to assess whether the difference between two contrasted options is judged to be morally relevant. We give an account of how different numbers of response options provided on such scales (odd vs. even) change the meaning of the test question by communicating different implicit presuppositions. We demonstrate experimentally that these changes can qualitatively affect the moral relevance judgments that subjects express in response to a given judgment problem. Several alternative explanations in terms of trivial measurement distortion are tested and refuted, and we present suggestive evidence as to what kind of factors might be prone to scale effects. The findings underscore that expressed moral judgments are constructed ad hoc and do not necessarily reflect the content of underlying stable moral commitments. We discuss implications for theories and methodology in moral psychology and in judgment and decision-making research more generally.

Timbre aspects of ride cymbals: Sound coloration analysis using psychoacoustics models and subjective evaluation

The timbre of a musical instrument is a multidimensional variable that relies on the complexity of human perception. So far, there are only a few studies concerning the timbre of percussion instruments. The sound characteristics of cymbals depend on geometry, material, ways of playing, and so on. On the perceptive side, sound coloration is one of the dimensions most used by musicians with regard to compare the timbre of Ride Cymbals. In order to get insight into the perception of the sound of Ride Cymbals, subjective evaluations of recorded cymbal sounds were carried out, using bipolar rating scales. Psychoacoustic models, such as Sharpness and Tonality, were also used to analyze the sound signals. Based on subjective and objective evaluations, linear regression models were proposed to quantify perceptive dimensions such as brightness and darkness. The coefficients of determination indicate that this kind of model can be used as a feasible way to represent sound coloration in Ride Cymbals.

The Impact of Participative and Directive Leadership on Organisational Culture: An Organisational Development Perspective

Leadership is critical for the success of any organisation developing a sustainable and competitive culture. Organizational culture mediates the association between leadership styles and organizational performance. The purpose of the present study was to assess the impact of participative and directive leadership on organisational culture from an organisational development perspective. The data was collected from a sample of 246 administrative departmental employees at Fort Hare University using a self-designed biographical and occupational questionnaire. To measure participative leadership, a six-item 5-point rating scale adopted from Arnold et al. (2000) was also employed. To measure directive leadership, a seven-item bi-polar rating scale adopted from Litwin and Stringer (1968) was also employed. And to measure organisational culture, a four-item 5-point rating scale adopted from the Denison Organizational Culture Survey (Denison & Neale, 1996) was also used. Data analysis was done using various statistical techniques, including descriptive statistics, Pearson Product Moment Correlation Technique and Multiple Regression Analysis. The results showed that participative and directive leadership have positive and significant impact on organisational culture. However, directive leadership has negative and insignificant impact on adaptability. The results also indicated that participative and directive leadership combined have no additive impact on organisational culture. However, participative leadership had a stronger effect on organisational culture than when was combined with directive leadership. The present study therefore, recommends managers to use participative leadership in their efforts to adapt their organisational cultures to achieve a sustained competitive culture. However, directive leadership may be used in certain organisational contingencies that demand it. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n23p1970

Emotion Regulation, Personality and Social Adjustment in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

The study examines how emotion regulation and emotion dysregulation in 3 - 12 years old children with autism spectrum disorders (n = 39) are linked with the five factors of personality and their social adjustment. Children were assessed by means of the Differential Scales of Intellectual Efficiency-Revised edition (EDEI-R). The teachers have completed the CARS-T, the Bipolar Rating Scales based on the Five Factor Model (EBMCF) and the French version of Emotion Regulation Checklist (ERC-vf) and a Social Adjustment scale (including items related to Theory of Mind, EASE-ToM, and related to social rules, EASE-Social-Skills). Positive and significant correlations are obtained between emotion regulation scores and verbal developmental age, personality factors of openness, agreeableness, and extraversion. The emotion dysregulation score is negatively and significantly linked with the factor of emotional stability, but positively and significantly linked with extraversion. Moreover, emotion regulation scores are positively and significantly linked with scores in social adjustment. Linear regression by stepwise shows that both extraversion and agreeableness explain 66.5% of the variance of the emotion regulation score; and extraversion, agreeableness and emotional stability explain 68.3% of the variance of the emotion dysregulation score. The openness explains 55.9% of the variance of the EASE-ToM score. Both agreeableness and extraversion explain 61.6% of the variance of the EASE-Social Skills score.

Research Programs in State Universities in the CALABARZON Area

Research is one of the four – fold functions of institutions of higher learning. It is relevant to instruction, extension and production. Relevant to this function, this study assessed the institutional research program of five state universities in the CALABARZON area, Philippines. It made used of the descriptive survey method with the bipolar rating scale questionnaire as the main instrument utilized in gathering data supplemented with interview. The respondents were composed of 59 research administrators and 158 faculty researchers. Faculty researchers are found to be mostly master’s degree holder, assistant professor, regular permanent, with 17 years of teaching experience, have participated in research symposium/seminar/workshop, with seven subject teaching load, and without professional affiliation. Assessment of the institutional research agenda reveals that all seven aspects were rated positive to quite positive as to evaluation; strong to quite strong in terms of potency; and active to quite active in terms of activity. Faculty researchers have also exposed their expectations regarding research production, dissemination and utilization. The study culminated in identifying needs based on the findings on faculty profile, assessment of the institutional agenda and prospects in the institutional agenda. Utilizing these needs, strategies to enhance research production, dissemination and utilization are proposed.

Olfaction: When Nostrils Compete

In vision, alternating percepts occur when two different visual stimuli are presented separately to the two eyes. By analogy, simultaneous presentation of two different odorants separately to the two nostrils has now been shown to cause alternating odor percepts, an effect termed 'binaral rivalry'.

Optimal Design of Branching Questions to Measure Bipolar Constructs

Scholars routinely employ rating scales to measure attitudes and other bipolar constructs via questionnaires, and prior research indicates that this is best done using sequences of branching questions in order to maximize measurement reliability and validity. To identify the optimal design of branching questions, this study analyzed data from several national surveys using various modes of interviewing. We compared two branching techniques and different ways of using responses to build rating scales. Three general conclusions received empirical support: (1) after an initial three-option question assessing direction (e.g., like, dislike, neither), respondents who select one of the endpoints should be asked to choose among three levels of extremity, (2) respondents who initially select a midpoint with a precise label should not be asked whether they lean one way or the other, and (3) bipolar rating scales with seven points yield measurement accuracy superior to that of three-, five-, and nine-point scales.

Social desirability in the measuring of patient satisfaction after treatment of coloproctologic disorders

Within the field of medicine, much attention is being paid to quality management, whereby patient satisfaction plays a major role. In order to measure this construct, usually rather general, bipolar rating scales are applied. However, these scales are often susceptible to social desirability biases. Coloproctological patients were asked to complete a questionnaire with ratings of satisfaction and anxiety at two different points of measurement: One group while in treatment (N = 86) and a second group approximately 1 year after their treatment (N = 328). Even when controlling for relevant demographic influences, a clear decrease in intensity of the evaluation ratings is shown when the survey was administered 1 year after release from hospital as compared to during the patients' stay in hospital. For generally formulated scales of patient satisfaction, social desirability constitutes a significant bias. The usual conceptualization of a bipolar continuum of patient satisfaction or dissatisfaction must be renounced. Instead, questionnaires might be constructed in three steps which investigate problem dimensions at a medium level of concreteness. Only in this way can quality management gain credibility and trust within as well as beyond the field of medicine.

An Analysis of a Cross-Cultural Personality Inventory: The IPIP Big-Five Factor Markers in Croatia

In this article, we describe the factor structure in both self-reports and peer ratings of the items in a cross-cultural Big-Five inventory in Croatia. Using 2 versions of an inventory developed from the International Personality Item Pool (IPIP; Goldberg, 1999), this is one of the first cross-national analyses of these IPIP measures. A large sample of university students (N = 519) used the translated Croatian version of the 100-item IPIP Big Five inventory to describe themselves, and they were also described by 515 of their acquaintances on the same instrument. In separate analyses of both self-reports and peer ratings, the 100-item and 50-item versions of these IPIP measures showed clear Five-factor orthogonal structures that were nearly identical to the American structure. These factors were strongly related on a one-to-one basis with those derived from a Croatian translation of Goldberg's (1992) bipolar rating scales.

Web-Based Intervention for Changing Attitudes of Obesity among Current and Future Teachers

Objective To evaluate attitude change among student teachers and schoolteachers when exposed to a Web-based educational module promoting size acceptance. Design Subjects were randomly assigned to a control group or 1 of 4 treatment groups to evaluate the effect of module, presenter credibility, and/or image on attitudes of obesity and processes of change using the Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM) testing cognitive and psychological cues. On-line assessment occurred at the pretest, posttest, and 6-week follow-up. Settings Web-based. Participants 258 adults, mean age 26.8 ± 10.2 years. Intervention Module content included factors related to obesity, implications of weight loss efforts, classroom activities, and bias-free intervention techniques. Main Outcome Measure(s) Attitudes of obesity by the Anti-Fat Attitudes Test and the effect of the presenter using a bipolar rating scale. Analysis One-way repeated measures analysis of variance, analysis of covariance, and general post hoc analysis. Results Negative attitudes decreased in treatment groups between pretest to posttest ( P < .001) and pretest to follow-up ( P ≤ .006). Unlike the credible “nonfat” presenter, exposure to the credible “fat” presenter positively influenced attitude change ( P = .031). Conclusions and Implications On-line communication of size acceptance improved attitudes of obesity long term. The findings support the ELM. The module demonstrates promise for teacher training in size sensitivity.

Personality Out of Proportion?

The field of personality assessment has evolved the normative practice of centering scores on their means, evaluating associations among measures with Pearson correlations, and using factor analytic methods to reduce redundancy and provide putative explanatory variables. At least some of these explanatory variables, or factors, have become well-known elements in trait theories of personality structure (e.g., the Five-factor model). Hofstee and Ten Berge (2004/this issue) suggest an alternative set of procedures arising from treating the midpoints of bipolar rating scales as true zero points. These procedures lead to a very different view of personality structure in which one factor provides a nearly sufficient summary of personality judgments. I scrutinize the methodological choices implied by these procedures here. This evaluation leads to the conclusion that Hofstee and Ten Berge provide methods and results that cannot serve to replace normative practice and well-known findings but do provide insight into important questions not typically addressed by personality assessors.