When doing research and gathering data, you will likely organize that information by grouping it according to established levels or categories of measurement, which is done to understand its nature and ensure appropriate analysis. The nature of different kinds of information determines the appropriate measurement method, which is why different measurements are used and the same type is not applied to all types of data. Researchers analyze and understand information gathered for research using ratio scales, one method for this purpose. Measurements that include a genuine zero point, a defining characteristic of the kind of measurements to which these scales apply, facilitate easy comparison between factors such as age, time, weight, and more. This article covers ratio scales, explaining the concept and providing clarifying examples. It (analysis using a ratio scale) involves understanding the definition of a ratio scale and identifying which measurements are suitable for this type of analysis.
What is a ratio scale?
A ratio scale is a tool that market research primarily uses. Due to its high level of accuracy, this level of measurement is the most advanced among the four standard levels, making it the highest ranked. Ratio scales are a type of scale that allows you to organize, order, and rank your data, possessing capabilities and properties for data handling that include having equal intervals between values. To enable researchers to determine and describe the exact quantity or magnitude being measured, a scale must possess properties including a true zero and no negative numbers. A ratio scale measures characteristics like length, amount of money, age, duration of time, and mass, and analyzes market research concepts such as purchase value, household income, and customer lifetime value, allowing for precise quantitative comparisons.
A ratio scale describes subjects such as sales figures, market presence, customer information, and pricing strategies in market research inquiries. Variables, which are measured values on a ratio scale, are characterized by order, consistent spacing, and a true zero point, allowing all arithmetic operations; consequently, their values are non-negative and cannot be negative. Temperature cannot be measured on a ratio scale because, unlike a ratio scale, its common scales (like Celsius and Fahrenheit) do not have a true zero point (where zero means the complete absence of heat) and therefore do not support all arithmetic operations like meaningful multiplication or division of the temperature values themselves. One cannot measure temperature (in Celsius or Fahrenheit) using a ratio scale because 0 degrees Celsius or Fahrenheit does not represent a true absence of temperature. A true zero signifies the complete lack of the characteristic being measured. At zero degrees (in Celsius or Fahrenheit), temperature itself still exists. Ratio scales are not appropriate for measuring temperature using the Celsius or Fahrenheit systems. The Kelvin scale has a true zero (0 Kelvin), which makes it suitable for ratio scale measurement.
A ratio scale allows analysts to convert between units for quantities like calories, speed, weight, joules, watts, and others. Ratio scales can accommodate both quantities that are counted individually (discrete values) and those that can be infinitely divided (continuous values).
Why use a ratio scale?
Ratio scales encompass four distinct levels of measurement:
- Labels and categorizes variables (nominal)
- Ranks categories available (ordinal)
- Encompasses equal, known intervals (interval)
- Has a true or meaningful zero (ratio)
This allows you to analyze how the numbers assigned to any chosen factor relate to each other, serving as its core purpose and function. It enables people to examine the relationship between values. To give an example and illustrate how that works in practice, if the factor you are measuring is the number of sales in the past three months, this capability enables you to definitively state that 10 sales is double the amount of five sales. This capability is useful because it permits analysts to perform advanced statistical procedures. It supports complex statistical analysis, although the ability to perform such complicated analysis depends on the specific research question and the factors involved. Analysts use this capability to conduct these advanced statistical procedures, making it highly useful for their work.
Analysts can use ratio scale data in several ways. They can use it by creating visual charts or arranging it in tables. Analysts can also calculate measures from this data. Measures used to find central tendencies include the mode, median, and mean; these are used to find typical values, and it is possible to use them for this purpose. Furthermore, analysts can use their ratio scale data to calculate the spread of values. Measures for calculating spread include range, variance, and standard deviation. Analysts can calculate spread for factors like sales numbers, client counts, customer age, or income.
Ratio scale examples
To understand the value of using ratio scale measurement, you should look at real-world illustrations. These practical ratio scale examples are useful precisely because they directly help you appreciate the benefits of this measurement method. Therefore, the benefit of using such examples is gaining a clear understanding of the value ratio scales offer.
Miles per hour
peed is an easy example of something measured on a ratio scale; speed is a ratio scale measurement. Speed is an example of the ratio scale because it has a true zero point, representing no forward movement. Having this true zero value is a consequence that makes plotting and visualizing speed data on charts easy. Speed allows you to make true ratio comparisons, which shows how speed demonstrates the properties of a ratio scale. For instance, 50 miles per hour is exactly half the speed of 100 mph, and 200 mph is twice the speed of 100 mph and four times the speed of 50 mph, showing the relationship between these speeds and how ratio comparisons are made. This ability to compare different factors and their numerical values allows you to understand how they relate to each other proportionately; the point of making these comparisons is precisely to see these proportionate relationships between variables and values, and this is how having a true zero and being able to form ratios helps you analyze data.
Time
Time spent is measured on a ratio scale. This is because time cannot have a negative value, meaning “negative time” does not exist and there is a true zero point. When researching how long customers take to make a purchase on your website, you measure the duration by starting from the moment they begin the purchasing process and ending when they click the final order button. Therefore, the measurement begins when they start the process and ends upon clicking the final order button. You can make meaningful ratio comparisons with time measurements; for instance, 10 minutes is double the duration of five minutes, meaning it is two times the value of five minutes. Similarly, an hour (60 minutes) has a relationship of being 12 times longer than five minutes, making it 12 times the value of five minutes.
Weight
Weight is appropriate for ratio scales because it possesses a key characteristic: it includes a true zero point. Yes, weight does have a true zero point, which signifies no weight at all. Weight serves as an example of something appropriate for ratio scales. A ratio scale allows you to understand the proportional relationship between different weights. This understanding of the proportional relationship is a key function or benefit of using a ratio scale when measuring weight. Importantly, the unit of measurement used, such as milligrams, kilograms, ounces, or pounds, does not affect what a ratio scale allows you to understand about the relationship between different weights.
Age
Age is an example of an attribute that ratio scales can display. According to this sentence, age can be plotted on ratio scales and it is among the most frequently measured characteristics on which age can be plotted. Businesses often use this measurement, commonly in market research and studies of customer characteristics. Companies do often use “this” in these fields. According to this sentence, it is not possible to be younger than zero years old. Because it is impossible to be younger than zero years old, you can accurately know the true age of each group and how their ages compare to others; this impossibility enables you to know the true value and relationships of age groups. An example of proportional age relationships is that people aged 40 are exactly twice the age of people aged 20, but they are half the age of people aged 80. Proportionally, 40-year-olds are exactly twice the age of 20-year-olds and half the age of 80-year-olds.
The bottom line
To summarize, the most crucial point and a key characteristic defining a ratio scale is that it requires a true zero value. Yes, a ratio scale necessitates a true zero value. With data collected on a ratio scale, you can perform detailed descriptions and predictive analyses, regardless of the measurement units used. This capability benefits marketing professionals and researchers by helping them conduct these types of analyses, making ratio scale data collection particularly useful. The result of this analytic capability is that it allows your company to produce more valuable insights that directly inform your decisions, making it very useful for a company’s decision-making process. However, a ratio scale is not always suitable for every type of data or research question. When a true zero point is present, an advantage of using a ratio scale is that you can easily see how different factors and their values relate proportionally. The presence of this true zero helps with data visualization because you can easily visualize the relationship between variables and values on a ratio scale when that true zero point exists.