1. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_Measurement LIS 570 Session 2.2

2. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 2 Objectives Understand basics of research design Clarify areas of interest Organize teams, schedule for research reports

3. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 3 Agenda Discussion of measurements and variables –Level of analysis (focus of interest) –Variables: independent, dependent, mediating, moderating –Association, correlation, cause & effect Organizational –Sign up: individual research methods reports –Exercise: interest areas and formation of teams –Images and memory

4. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 4 The Phases of Research Phase 1: Essential First Steps Phase 2: Data Collection Phase 3: Analysis and Interpretation

5. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 5 Essential First Steps Phase 1 –Select, Narrow, and Define Problem Exploratory Qualitative Research Refine “problem statement” –Select a Research Design –Design and Devise Measures for Variables “Operationalization” of the variable Measurement Process –Select Tables for Analysis –Select a Sample

6. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 6 Research in LIS570 Purpose –Descriptive What is …. –Exploratory—seek Relationships Association Between Ideas (Concepts) –Explanatory and predictive Cause and Effect Relationships

7. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 7 Research Purpose Motivation: To whom (else) is this an area of interest? –Impact: research, professional practice, social policy –Consumer of/user of/stakeholder in the results –Avoidance of “cult mentality” Improve understanding? Have a practical application?

8. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 8 Basic or Applied Research? Fundamental Understanding Practical Application Balance?

9. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 9 Stokes’s Concept of “Pasteur’s Quadrant” -Donald E. Stokes, 1997 Fundamental Understanding Practical Application Pasteur’s Quadrant

10. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 10 Measurement Concepts (Caution: research meanings can differ from popular use of terms) Levels of analysis: e.g., individual, group, organization, industry, society, … Variables (entities that vary) Values or attributes Relationships among variables

11. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 11 Examples Concept Individual Group: work group Variable: Gender Relationship Attribute Height, gender, age Size, composition Male, Female In children, height and age are positively correlated

12. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 12 Variable Relationships Independent (IV) Dependent (DV) Mediating (intervening) Moderating

13. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 13 Variables Independent Variables Dependent Variables

14. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 14 Variables Independent Variables Dependent Variables Mediating Variables

15. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 15 Variables Independent Variables Dependent Variables Mediating Variables Moderating Variables Moderating Variables

16. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_Measurement Measurement Issues How can I measure that? Selecting Variables. Developing indicators for concepts

17. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 17 Steps Define concepts Identify dimensions Identify variables Identify indicators Evaluate the indicators Process: Moving from the abstract and theoretical to the empirical and measurable (from the abstract to the concrete )

18. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 18 Descending the Ladder of Abstraction Problem statement –Statement of Concepts Abstractions Not empirical Process of making empirical –Operationalization (Bouma) –Clarifying concepts (De Vaus)

19. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 19 Descending the Ladder of Abstraction Process –Develop a conceptual definition for the concept(s) locate a range of definitions select one for the study –Find variables for the concept –Assess validity of variables

20. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 20 Develop a Conceptual Definition Conceptual definition –“Dictionary type definition” –Consists of more concepts Leisure Activities of Interest “activities-apart from obligation to work, family & society to which a person turns at will” –“interests = those activities which people actively seek out”

21. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 21 Locate and select a definition Locate a range of definitions –everyday definitions –scholarly definitions Select one definition –Useful –Appropriate –Relevant –Necessary to measure validity

22. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 22 Delineate the dimensions of the concept Many concepts have a number of different aspects or dimensions, and these should be identified and acknowledged May use one of these dimensions in the study May develop indicators for each dimension Example: What are the dimensions of leisure activity?

23. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 23 Conceptual definitions Importance of definition –Determines type(s) of data –Clarifies meaning for researchers, participants and readers “interests” = “likes and dislikes” leisure = “non-utilitarian activities

24. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 24 Concepts and variables Operationalization –finding measurable variables for concepts Operational definition –defines a concept in empirical terms How can I measure that?

25. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 25 Find Variables for the concept Definition –Concept which varies in type or amount Gender varies in type –Male or female Time spent engaging in leisure activities varies in amount –Concept which is measurable –Concept to which values have been assigned. Values must be - exhaustive; exclusive

26. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 26 Variables For most concepts there will be many variables Leisure Activities of interest Different types of Activities: –Engages in boxing –Engages in cooking Amount of time engaging in leisure Location of activity Level of organisation

27. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 27 Indicators Indicators become the focus of questions asked and evidence gathered An empirical observation that can be taken as evidence of particular attributes of a variable –E.g., male/female is an indicator of gender –Marital status? –Educational level?

28. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 28 Indicators To study the compassion of LIS570 students “a feeling of deep sorrow for living things stricken by misfortune” “a strong desire to alleviate the pain of living things” indicators –Cry when people die in movies –Get cramps upon seeing a motor accident –Have a feeling of sadness when the local possum stops coming for food

29. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 29 Indicators How many indicators should we use? How do we develop indicators? –Measures developed in previous studies –observation, unstructured interviews –informants

30. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 30 Evaluating indicators Validity –the indicators measure the concept that we think they are measuring –appropriateness and relevance of the indicators E.g., is educational level a valid indicator of social status? Reliability –We can rely on the answers that people give to the questions that we ask

31. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 31 Levels of measurement Any variable is composed of 2 or more categories or attributes –E.g., sex (male/ female); country of birth (Australia, USA, NZ etc) Level of measurement refers to how the categories of the variable relate to one another

32. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 32 Levels of measurement Nominal - measuring a variable at this level involves naming the calibration units –(1) = Male  Value Label –(2) = Female  Value Label –Sample data: 2 2 1 1 2 2 1 1

33. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 33 Levels of measurement Ordinal - involves arranging the calibration units into a logical order of rank Age (number of years) –(1) 18-24 –(2) 25-31 –(3) 32-38 –(4) 39-45 There is an order in the calibrations without any assumption that the distances between each calibrating unit are equal

34. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 34 Levels of measurement Interval e.g., number of hours; Values designate quantity; S2 more than S1 less than S3; Person 2 has more of the characteristic number of hours exercising (5 hours) than person 1 (2 hours); Difference between them is 3 hours Has order but also involves specifying an equal distance between each successive unit

35. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 35 Which level to aim for (De Vaus) Interval level data –precise averages can be calculated I.e., what is the average sex of students at UW? –More powerful and sophisticated techniques of analysis are available –higher levels of measurement provide more information –interval level measures can be converted to ordinal or nominal level but not vice versa

36. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 36 Summary - descending the ladder of abstraction

37. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 37 Research Ethics Voluntary No harm/informed consent Anonymity & Confidentiality Deception Analysis & Reporting: “intellectual honesty”

38. The Information School of the University of Washington LIS 570_MeasurementMason; p. 38 From last session Sample Topic Areas How people search for information How people search for health information Blues dancing (origin) Language barriers in library use Future role of libraries Improvements in library catalogs; metadata; linguistics Reference interviews Impact of users perception on cataloging How academic community uses special collections Technology and public libraries Job searching Application of library techniques to electronic documents Successful publishing Diet and nutrition Crofting community life Library services for the blind