Exam 10: Scaling and Index Construction

Replication involves:

The UCR crime index was described as an example of:

A scaling procedure in which respondents rather than judges place a series of statements into previously predetermined categories describes:

It is advisable for researchers to develop their own scales rather than to use already existing ones.

The Guttman method of devising attitude scales relies upon judges to select items.

What are salient factor scores and what are they used for? Give an example.

The forecasts of crime prediction scales are probabilistic or not 100 percent accurate for each score.

A scaling procedure which insists upon unidimensionality is:

_________________ is Guttman's notion that a scale should measure one and only one dimension.

ROP projects were:

Discuss the three major attitude scales used in the social sciences.What are their relative advantages/disadvantages?

In Guttman scales, the ability of the total score to predict the exact pattern of response is known as:

Most attitudinal scales used in the social sciences and criminal justice are interval in nature.

Crime seriousness scores are assigned to criminal incidents on the basis of scores or weights assigned to descriptions of such incidents by selected groups of respondents.

Simple summated scales consisting of five-point, bipolar response ranging from strongly agree to strongly disagree describe:

The Uniform Crime Reports is an example of an arbitrary scale.

Unless respondents answer each item in a scale, the responses must be discarded since there is no way of handling unknowns.

What is the purpose of scale and index construction? How useful are these efforts in the area of criminal justice research? What are the relative advantages/disadvantages of scales?

Which type of scale eliminates items which fail to discrimi nate between high and low scorers?

In which type of scales is the notion of reproducibility important?