MeasurementJacqueline Corcoran

Virginia Commonwealth University

From: Social Work Research Skills Workbook, Corcoran & Secret, 2013, Oxfordhttp://www.jacquelinecorcoran.com/

Measurement Concepts: ideas Operationalized: how concepts are

translated into numerical terms

Defining Variables Independent:

What we want to study for its impact In intervention research: what we

manipulate Dependent:

The result, outcome Changes as a result of the action of the

independent variable

Levels of measurement Nominal

categories, exhaustiveness and mutually exclusivity

Questions: Does this fall into a category? What category does this fall into?

Ordinal can be logically rank-ordered differences between ranks can’t be quantified

Questions Can I place these items in an approximate order?

Interval the distance separating attributes has meaning but no real zero Questions:

Can I place this on a scale that is very exact and precise? Ratio

the distance separating attributes has meaning and a real zero Can I place this on a scale that is very exact and precise, AND has an

absolute value?

Assigning Values to Variables Nominal: numerical values are assigned

arbitrarily Ordinal: use numbers that symbolize the

levels Interval and ratio: use the actual value.

Treatment Fidelity refers to how faithfully we have

implemented the intervention Internal validity Includes proper training and supervision

and examination of their work in sessions to ascertain that it sufficiently meets the standards and tenants of that particular treatment as it was designed.

Manualized treatment (treatment that follows a strict protocol)

Reasons to use standardized measures You will not be able to standardize

a new instrument Scoring and their interpretation Too many statistical tests Not re-inventing the wheel

Ways to find free measures Find out if your agency has purchased a

measure for its use. Contact the creator of a measure and

request permission to use the measure for educational purposes.

Bibliographies Fischer and Corcoran (2007a, 2007b) Corcoran and Hozack (2010) For strengths-based measures and how

to access them, see Early and Newsome (2004).

Agency Records Example 8.4 for key outcomes Certain types of agencies routinely

collect certain information that can be used for student projects