Can Likert Scales be Treated as Interval Scales?—A Simulation Study

The Likert scale is widely used in social work research, and is commonly constructed with four to seven points. It is usually treated as an interval scale, but strictly speaking it is an ordinal scale, where arithmetic operations cannot be conducted. There are pros and cons in using the Likert scale as an interval scale, but the controversy can be handled by increasing the number of points. Several researchers have suggested bringing the number up to eleven, on the basis of empirical data. In this article the authors explore this rational and share the same view, but simulate artificial data from both symmetrical normal and skewed distributions where the underlying metric is known in advance. Results show that more Likert scale points will result in a closer approach to the underlying distribution, and hence normality and interval scales. To increase generalizability social work practitioners are encouraged to use 11-point Likert scales from 0 to 10, a natural and easily comprehensible range.     

Short Forms for Attitude Scales in Social Sciences: The Case of Attitude Towards Capital Punishment

Attitude scales are common in the social sciences but quite often they are very long and hence short forms are needed. Short forms can reduce the fatigue problem and make it possible for other measurements to be included, but short forms must be produced without much sacrifice to reliability and validity. In this paper, capital punishment attitude scales are investigated as a special case. A total of 27 items whose psychometric properties have been well established are used. A simple and direct method of producing short forms is used to produce half (14 items) and quarter (7 items) versions of the original. Both two- and six-point Likert scales are used to investigate the interaction effects between number of item-response option and scale length. Results show that there is no clear difference between the two- and six-point scales in terms of reliabilities, but the six-point scale is preferred in respect of trace information and percentages of variance in the one-factor model, and is closer to normality. In practice, we suggest short forms should always be considered for attitude scales in social services, and more Likert scale points can produce even better short forms. Limitations and further directions are discussed.     

比较优势、规模经济与城市竞争力的理论分析

国内外学者在对城市竞争力的研究中,往往侧重城市竞争力的测算和排名,缺乏对城市竞争力形成的原因进行深度的理论分析,本文主要借用国际贸易中的比较优势理论和规模经济理论来分析城市竞争力形成的原因。文章指出,外部规模经济是形成城市竞争力的关键因素,产业集群是外部规模经济的表现形式,并用新古典经济学、新制度经济学、新增长理论和产业组织理论对外部规模经济形成竞争优势的原因展开理论分析。最后,文章以深圳为例进一步说明在开放和创新基础上形成的外部规模经济是产生强大城市竞争力的根本原因,培植关键产业的城市集群是提升城市未来竞争力的政策取向。     

高职大学生创业动机的实证研究

以研究高职大学生创业动机为出发点,以广州城市职业学院为例,按照李克特5点量表法对其创业动机进行测量。基于393份有效问卷数据,利用独立样本T检验、方差分析等方法进行统计分析。研究结果表明:高职学生创业动机水平较高;高职大学生的创业动机类型主要包含追名逐利型和自我实现型两大类;不同性别、不同年级、不同专业的学生在创业动机结构上存在显著性差异。根据研究结论,本研究建议:为更好地培养高职创业型人才,应该构建"分类培养、分层教学"的培养体系。     

Does social media promote democracy? Some empirical evidence

This study explores the relationship between social media and democracy in a cross-section of over 125 countries around the world. We find the evidence of a strong, positive correlation between Facebook penetration (a proxy for social media) and democracy. We further show that the correlation between social media and democracy is stronger for low-income countries than high-income countries. Our lowest point estimates indicate that a one-standard deviation (about 18 percentage point) increase in Facebook penetration is associated with an improvement in the democracy index by about 8-point (on a scale of 0–100) for the world sample and over 11 points for the sample of low-income countries.     

Globalization and Political Change in the Women's Movement: The Politics of Scale and Political Empowerment in the World March of Women*

Objective. The objective of the article is to show that in order to understand the ongoing transnational mobilizations of the European wing of the World March of Women (WMW) between 2000 and 2006 we also need to consider the politics of scale of the transnational social movements' mobilizations. The WMW is a transnational collective action that integrates women from grassroots organizations, labor unions, and leftist political parties in over 150 countries (approximately 6,000 groups) into a process of transnationalization of solidarities. Method. The method is based on the analysis of internal documents of the international and European wings of the movement, interviews with key actors and militants, and direct observations over the years 1998–2005. Results. The results are twofold: we investigate the shift in the politics of scale of the movement, from using the same scale as the political authorities with which they interact to the creation of its own scales of action (first part); we focus on the articulation of different scales of protest, showing how, by constructing networks and coalitions, actions, and demands under the WMW umbrella, grassroots women's groups are becoming empowered and are regaining political power over the definition, dissemination, and resolution of gender issues (second part). Conclusion. The conclusion is that this specific process of empowerment helps to explain why feminist activists pursue transnationalization actions despite all the material, ideological, and relational difficulties that accompany such actions.     

The Development and Initial Validation of a Psychoanalysis Use/Non-Use Scale among a Sample of Hong Kong Helping Professionals.

ABSTRACT

This article reports on the construction and initial validation of the Psychoanalysis Use/Non-Use scale (PUNU) and the complementary Conflicts with Hong Kong Chinese Culture scale (CHKCC), developed for assessing the penetration of psychoanalysis among counseling professionals in Hong Kong. A total of 217 Hong Kong social workers, psychologists, and counselors were surveyed to assess the scales' internal psychometric properties. Factor analysis confirmed a four-factor structure for the PUNU, and a unidimensional structure for the CHKCC, with 17 and 9 items, respectively. Internal reliability of both scales was good and discriminative validity was supported by comparisons with background information. These scales could help to identify factors that affect the understanding of psychoanalysis among professionals and could be useful for educational purposes.     

Grapes of Wrath: Discrimination in the Produce Aisle

Discrimination against minorities and people of lower social economic status is often hard to prove quantitatively. One way to measure discrimination concretely is to examine the quality of goods available to people of different races and socioeconomic status (SES). We investigated the quality of supermarket produce in neighborhoods of varying socioeconomic status (high, medium, and low SES). Fresh fruit was purchased from 3 different locations of 2 separate supermarket chains in a mid-sized southern city, for a total of 6 stores for comparison. Participants used 2 methods to record their perceptions of fruit quality in terms of both appearance and taste: a relative ranking of each fruit and a 9-point Likert scale. Results indicate that supermarkets in the lowest socioeconomic area had the poorest quality fruit and the markets in the highest SES had the best fruit. The results are discussed in terms of their potential implication on health and lifestyle factors for lower SES individuals.     

Disaster preparedness networks in rural Midwest communities: Organizational roles,collaborations, and support for older residents

ABSTRACT

This study investigated the roles and interconnections among community organizations belonging to local disaster coalitions in Midwest in supporting older residents. Representatives from 44 organizations participated in one-time survey. Most were non-profit (68%) or federal/state/local government agencies (23%). The analyses of 761 relationships showed stronger collaborations in assessment (average strength=2.88 on a 5-point scale), emergency response (2.72), and planning (2.61); and weaker collaborations in co-sponsoring programs (1.71) and supporting older residents (2.03). The extent of collaboration (network density) to support older adults was also low. Coalitions may enhance network density and centralization by developing sub-committee structure and strengthening existing collaborations.     

How does policy advice of the international monetary fund differ along the income of advised countries?

ABSTRACT

The policy advice literature has paid little attention to the role of international organizations in policy advisory systems. This article offers a systematic analysis of policy advice provided by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in the framework of the IMF’s regular Article IV consultations. The article argues that the content of IMF advice differs according to the income of the advised countries. Content analyses of the Article IV consultation reports of 18 countries show correlations between the gross national income (GNI) of the advised countries and the function of advice in the policy cycle, the specificity of advice, the recommended policy instruments and the targeted policy issues. Results show that the IMF rather points to policy problems, advices on policy goals and focuses on improving implementation when advising lower income countries. When advising higher income countries, the IMF’s advice focuses on means and specific policy tools.     

The Group Topic Evaluation Scale: Preliminary Validity,Reliability, and Use in Psychoeducational Groups

Process measures are important for evaluation of client reaction to psychoeducational group topics. Few scales have been created for measuring client responses in this setting. This study utilized secondary data to determine the initial validity of a Group Topic Evaluation Scale. Group members (N = 190) in a large, urban Driving Under the Influence program evaluated six different group topics using a created scale for a total of 623 responses. Principal component analysis found one factor comprising six items with good reliability. Two of the six topics scored significantly higher, indicating more meaningfulness to the clients. Implications are discussed.     

The Effects of Parenting Stress,Perceived Mastery,and Maternal Depression on Parent–Child Interaction

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to test a model that delineated the interrelationships among parenting stress, perceived mastery (defined as the belief that one's life chances are under one's own control), maternal depression, and parent–child interaction. A secondary data analysis of the Fragile Family and Child Well-Being Study was conducted, using a sample of 2,650 mothers. Results suggest that parenting stress undermines one's sense of perceived mastery which, in turn, resulted in depression. Moreover, the results also indicated that parenting stress directly affected maternal depression and parent–child interaction. There was no support for the hypothesis that parenting stress undermines one's sense of perceived mastery which, in turn, resulted in depression, which affected one's parent–child interaction. Implications of these findings for professionals working with mothers of young children are discussed. Future research should test this model using other forms of parenting behavior.     

Approach/avoidance: Communists and women in East Germany, 1945-9

This article explores the shifting strategies of the German Communist party (KPD, later SED) towards the woman question in the Soviet zone of occupation. In the fluid post-war situation, the KPD/SED had to resort to heterodox experiments as it attempted, initially, to mobilize electoral support among women and, later, to organize women on the shopfloor. Women Communists played a prominent role in these efforts which included the creation of a women's league. In consequence, they enjoyed more influence in the young SED than ever before (or after) in the German Communist movement. As they proceeded, activists stumbled, however, not only against the hostility of women towards the Communist message but also against the resistance of male comrades and trade union leaders to apolitical, proto-feminist appeals. To break internal impasses, women relied on the support of the top leadership and, especially, Soviet command. If the centralization of power initially helped their cause, the tightening of the Stalinist vice in 1948-9 knocked out its foundations. Electoral politics counted for little, while women's integration in the workforce slid down the ladder of priorities. Its separatist tendencies quashed, the women's league continued only as a transmission belt of the party line to housewives.     

Disaster Outreach Service Provision

ABSTRACT

This article reports preliminary findings on the development of an index that measures outreach workers' perceptions of the provision of services to survivors of natural disasters. Data were collected from a sample of 64 outreach counselors who worked for Project Recovery during the Great Flood of 1993 along the Mississippi River in Illinois. Factor analyses were used to identify a 15 item index. The fifteen items represent five factors which explained 82.2% of the variance among the items. The resulting Disaster Outreach Service Provision (DOSP) Index has acceptable reliability estimates (Alpha = .83) and appears normally distributed. The index represents an important step in filling the need for measurement instruments designed specifically for use in natural disaster situations. Such instruments can be used in evaluating the provision of disaster relief services and in conducting disaster related research.     

The Effects of Participation and Resources on Democratic Attitudes: Role of Social Capital in Four Latin and South American Countries

ABSTRACT

Social capital research in Latin and South American countries has been gravely limited by the absence of valid measures of social capital. This study seeks to create a scale for measuring social capital in the Latin and South American context using exploratory and confirmatory statistical procedures. It also seeks to test the effect of social capital on democratic attitudes in Latin America through structural equation modeling methods. Analysis of four countries in Latin and South America suggests that social capital is positively related to democratic attitudes. Recommendations for future studies are highlighted, and scale properties and outcomes are discussed.     

The destruction of liberty in French Guiana: law,identity and the meaning of legal space, 1794–1830

Abstract

This article examines the colonial legal culture of French Guiana from 1794 to 1830 during a period marked by dramatic historical rupture; slaves in the colony who were liberated by decree of the French legislature in 1794 were returned to slavery under Napoleon. People who managed to remain free in the nineteenth century endured humiliating legal handicaps as well as challenges to their free status. In Guiana during this period, a person's access to the ‘rights of man and citizen’ depended on intricate and ultimately fragile legal structures. The perils besetting Guiana's freed people during and after the French Revolution often arose from the highly adjustable character of legal space – the legal status of imperial territory in relation to domestic soil. This article draws on archival materials including notarial documents and trial records to reconstruct the role of law and legal discourse in mediating everyday life, familial relationships and social encounters on the French colonial frontier.     

Evaluation of the psychometric properties of two scales of work–family conflict among Ghanaian employees

This study examines the psychometric properties of Carlson, Kacmar, and Williams’ (2000) multidimensional scale of work–family conflict and Matthews, Kath, and Barnes-Farrell’s (2010) abbreviated version of the instrument in Ghana. Five hundred and forty-one (541) employees selected from different organizations responded to structured questionnaires administered in English. Results from confirmatory factor analysis supported the six-dimensional factor structure of Carlson et al.’s (2000) measure. The instrument was found to have good internal consistency, adequate convergent validity and discriminant validity, as well as invariance of factor structure across gender. The results also supported the two-dimensional factor structure of Matthews et al.’s (2010) abbreviated version of the work–family conflict scale. The dimensions of work–family conflict on the abbreviated measure correlated strongly with respective dimensions of the original multidimensional version. Latent mean comparisons suggested that men reported more work–family conflict than women on both measures. The study demonstrates the applicability of both the six-dimensional work–family conflict scale and the abbreviated work–family conflict measure for research in Ghana.     

Susceptibility to Emotional Contagion

Abstract

This article reports a psychometric evaluation of a measure of susceptibility to emotional contagion, designed to measure the degree to which a person is vulnerable to “catching” and sharing the emotion experienced by another. The scale was examined to test its application to depression, burnout, and impairment among practicing social workers. Data from a probability sample of 751 practicing social workers were collected in an anonymous survey about social workers' health and work issues. The sample was split to conduct exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. The factor analyses resulted in a revised scale that demonstrated acceptable internal consistency reliability, good content validity, excellent factorial validity, and preliminary construct validity. Susceptibility to emotional contagion was related to burnout, depression, and professional impairment. Future recommendations are made and this instrument may be a useful tool for the identification, prevention, intervention, and education of social workers at risk for depression, burnout, and professional impairment.     

Discerning self‐interested behaviour in attitudes towards welfare state responsibilities across Europe

Baslevent C, Kirmanoglu H. Discerning self‐interested behaviour in attitudes towards welfare state responsibilities across Europe Int J Soc Welfare 2011: 20: 344–352 © 2010 The Author(s), International Journal of Social Welfare © 2010 Blackwell Publishing Ltd and the International Journal of Social Welfare. This article reports on an investigation into the influence of individual characteristics on attitudes to government responsibility for welfare‐related tasks using data from the European Social Survey. The main finding of this investigation was that socio‐demographic characteristics, basic personal values, a left–right ideological position and religious affiliation were all associated with attitudes towards welfare policies. An item‐by‐item examination of the six issues enquired about in the survey revealed that people tended to hold the government responsible for tasks that would benefit them more directly. Taken as a whole, the empirical findings were interpreted to mean that individuals' tastes for welfare state policies were driven, at least partially, by self‐interest, but it was also noted that further work was needed to disentangle the potential role of group loyalty effects.     

Barriers to the Use of Mental Health Services by African-American and Hispanic Elderly Persons

Abstract

This study discusses barriers to the utilization of community-based mental health services by African-American and Hispanic elderly persons. The study sample consists of “key Informants,” chosen because they were knowledgeable about the mental health needs and use of mental health services by African-American or Hispanic elderly persons. Principal component analysis using orthogonal rotation was conducted on the 23 item barrier scale and identified three levels of service barriers for the entire sample and for each subsample of African-American and Hispanic informants. Based upon the study findings, a number of strategies are offered to improve Utilization and overcome service delivery barriers.