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Home Issues Backissues Volume 31, No.1 A Psychometric Analysis of the Attitudinal Scales: A Study of the Attitude toward Unification and Independence from the TEDS 2003 Data

A Psychometric Analysis of the Attitudinal Scales: A Study of the Attitude toward Unification and Independence from the TEDS 2003 Data

Min-Hua Huang
2006 / 05
Volume 13, No.1

pp.43-85
10.6612/tjes.2006.13.01.43-85

Abstract

Political scientists usually pay little attention to the understanding of measurement theories when they conduct a quantitative empirical analysis. This engenders many problems beyond their knowledge. While not every problem has a substantial impact on the research, it may fundamentally threaten the credibility and nullify the achievement once it happens. This article tries to argue the importance of proper understanding on some basic knowledge of measurement theories through a discussion of the principles and nuclear issues. Furthermore, a psychometric analysis of sixteenth different scales, based on five psychometric assumptions, is carried out for the unification-independence attitude. The result indicates each of the five assumptions is possibly influential to the regression analysis, even if the simple correlation of the two scales is as high as 0.995. This finding leads to an important conclusion: political scientists should have a serious discussion about the assumptions of their measurement and evaluate the possible impact which may discredit the scientific value of their research.

Keywords

political methodology

measurement theory

psychometrics

unification and independence