VA R I AB L E S A N D

M E AS U R E M E N T
AO
DR. GANTA DURGA R
WHAT IS A VARIABLE?

• Individuals make value judgements constantly in our daily lives: ‘this food is excellent’; ‘I could not sleep well last night’; ‘I do not like
this’; and ‘I think this is wonderful’.

• Judgements are based upon preferences, indicators or assessment of individuals

• Vary markedly from person to person.
• No uniform yardstick with which to measure them.
• People express these feelings or preferences, they do so on the basis of certain criteria in their minds, or in relation to their expectations.

• Let us consider this in a professional context:

• • ‘This programme is effective.’

• • ‘This programme is not effective.’
• • ‘We are providing a quality service to our clients.’
• • ‘This is a waste of time.’
• • ‘In this institution women are discriminated against.’
• • ‘There is no accountability in this office.’
• • ‘This product is not doing well.’

• These are judgements (not preferences) that require a sound basis on which to proclaim.
• How to find whether judgements are rational and sound? For example, if you want to find out if a programme is effective?
• Measurement.
• How to measure? – Through variables
• An image, perception or concept that is capable of measurement – hence capable of taking on different values – is
called a variable.

• In other words, anything that can be measured is called a variable.

• Definitions

• ‘A variable is a property that takes on different values. Putting it redundantly, a variable is something that varies … A
variable is a symbol to which numerals or values are attached’ (kerlinger, 1986: 27).

• A variable is ‘rational unit of analysis that can assume any one of a number of designated sets of values’ (black and
champion, 1976: 34).

• A concept that can be measured on any one of the four types of measurement scale, which have varying degrees of
precision in measurement, is called a variable

• Feelings, preferences, values and sentiments can be measured indirectly through appropriate indicators with varying
degrees of accuracy.
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A CONCEPT AND A VARIABLE

• Measurability is the main difference between a concept and a variable.

• Concepts are mental images or perceptions and therefore their meanings vary
markedly from individual to individual,

• Whereas variables are measurable, though, of course, with varying degrees of

accuracy.

• A concept cannot be measured whereas a variable can be subjected to measurement

by crude/ refined or subjective/objective units of measurement.

• Concepts are subjective impressions which, if measured as such would cause

problems in comparing responses obtained from different respondents.

• It is therefore important for the concepts to be converted into variables (either directly
or through a set of indicators)

• The degree of precision with which variables can be measured markedly varies from
one measurement scale to another (nominal, ordinal, interval and ratio).
• Operationlisation – as concepts cannot be measured directly, you first need to go through the process of
CONVERTING CONCEPTS INTO VARIABLES

identifying indicators – a set of criteria reflective of the concept – which can then be converted into variables.

• Concepts –indicators -variables

• For example, to decide objectively if a person is ‘rich’, one first needs to decide upon the indicators of wealth.

• Assume that we decide upon income and assets as the indicators.

• Income is also a variable since it can be measured in dollars; therefore, you do not need to convert this into a
variable.

• Although the assets owned by an individual are indicators of his/her ‘richness’,they can’t be measured as such.
You need to look further at the indicators of assets. For example, house, boat, car and investments are
indicators of assets which can be measured by their monetary value (rupees).

• This will give the total value of the assets owned by a person.

• Classification - fix a level, based upon income distribution and an average level of assets owned by members
of a community. Then make a decision about whether the person should be classified as ‘rich’.

• Operationalisation of concepts such as the ‘effectiveness’ or ‘impact’ of a programme is difficult when

compared to concepts such as rich or academic achievement.
TYPES OF VARIABLES

•A variable can be classified in three different

ways
•• The causal relationship;
•• The study design;
•• The unit of measurement.
FROM THE VIEWPOINT OF CAUSAL RELATIONSHIP

Four sets of variables operate in studies based on causal relationship; they are

1. Change variables/ independent variables –

cause variables which are responsible for bringing about change in a phenomenon, situation or circumstance;

2. Outcome/effect variables/dependent variables

Variables which are the variable change(s) (effects, impacts or consequences) brought about by the introduction of a
change/independent variable.

3. Extraneous variables
The unmeasured variables which affect or influence the link between cause-and-effect variables;
These variables may increase or decrease the magnitude or strength of the relationship between independent and dependent
variables.

4. Intervening variables/ confounding variables/connecting/linking variables

In certain situations the relationship between an independent and a dependent variable cannot be established without the
intervention of another variable. Such variables are called intervening variables. The cause, or independent, variable will have the
assumed effect only in the presence of an intervening variable.
EXAMPLE 1: SMOKING CAUSES CANCER
EXAMPLE 2: EFFECTS OF A MARRIAGE COUNSELLING SERVICE ON MARITAL PROBLEMS
 EXAMPLE OF INTERVENING VARIABLES
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN FERTILITY AND MORTALITY
OTHER VARIABLES
• Control variables
Control variables are the factors or variables that are held constant or regulated in an experiment to ensure that
the relationship between the independent and dependent variables is not influenced by other extraneous
factors.

Example: In the study on ‘study hours’ and exam performance, researchers may control for prior knowledge of
the subject matter. This ensures that the exam scores are not influenced by students' previous knowledge,
isolating the effect of study hours.

• Moderator variables
Moderator variables are variables that influence the strength or direction of the relationship between the
independent and dependent variables. In other words, the effect of the independent variable on the dependent
variable changes depending on the level or presence of the moderator variable.

Example: In a study on exercise (independent variable) and weight loss (dependent variable), age could be a
moderator variable. The relationship between exercise and weight loss might be stronger for younger people
than for older individuals, making age a moderating factor that influences the outcome.
IMPACT OF DIGITAL LITERACY ON THE ADOPTION OF E-GOVERNANCE SERVICES
AMONG SCHEDULED TRIBES IN KERALA – A STUDY

OBJECTIVES

1.TO ASSESS THE LEVEL OF DIGITAL LITERACY AMONG SCHEDULED TRIBES

2.TO EXAMINE THE EXTENT OF E-GOVERNANCE SERVICE ADOPTION
3.TO ANALYZE THE BARRIERS TO DIGITAL LITERACY AND E-GOVERNANCE
ADOPTION
4.TO STUDY THE ROLE OF DEMOGRAPHIC FACTORS IN E-GOVERNANCE
ADOPTION
OBJECTIVE WISE VARIABLES
1. To assess the level of digital literacy among 3. To analyze the barriers to digital literacy and e-
scheduled tribes governance adoption
Variables: Variables:
Digital literacy level (independent) Internet accessibility (independent)
Digital skills (independent) Device ownership (independent)
Training on digital tools (independent) Affordability of internet (independent)
Lack of awareness (independent)

2. To examine the extent of e-governance service 4. To study the role of demographic factors in e-
adoption governance adoption
Variables: Variables:
E-governance service usage (dependent) Age (control)
Type of e-governance services used (dependent) Gender (control)
Education level (control)
Occupation (control)
Research Objective Variable Type Variable Name Question Response Format Measurement Scale

☐ Not confident at all

1. To assess the How confident are you
☐ Slightly confident ☐
level of digital in using digital tools
Independent Digital Literacy Level Moderately confident Ordinal
literacy among (smartphones,
☐ Very confident ☐
Scheduled Tribes computers, internet)?
Extremely confident

☐ Using social media

• INDIVIDUALS Which of the following
☐ Sending emails ☐
digital skills do you
Independent Digital Skills Online banking ☐ Nominal
possess? (Check all
Government e-
that apply)
services ☐ None

Have you received any

Training on Digital
Independent training on using ☐ Yes ☐ No Nominal
Tools
digital platforms?
Research Objective Variable Type Variable Name Question Response Format Measurement Scale

How often do you use

2. To examine the
government e-services ☐ Never ☐ Rarely ☐
extent of e- E-Governance Service
Dependent (online applications, Sometimes ☐ Often ☐ Ordinal
governance service Usage
digital payments, Always
adoption
service portals)?

• INDIVIDUALS

☐ Online ID applications
Which government e-
☐ Land records ☐
Type of E-Governance services have you
Dependent Online grievances ☐ Nominal
Services Used used? (Check all that
Welfare schemes ☐
apply)
None
Research Objective Variable Type Variable Name Question Response Format Measurement Scale

3. To analyze the
barriers to digital Do you have access to
Independent Internet Accessibility ☐ Yes ☐ No Nominal
literacy and e- the internet at home?
governance adoption

What digital devices do ☐ Smartphone ☐

Independent Device Ownership you own? (Check all Laptop ☐ Desktop ☐ Nominal
that apply) None

☐ Very expensive ☐
• INDIVIDUALS How affordable is Somewhat expensive ☐
Independent Affordability of Internet Ordinal
internet access for you? Affordable ☐ Very
affordable

Do you feel you lack

☐ Strongly Disagree ☐
awareness about
Independent Lack of Awareness Disagree ☐ Neutral ☐ Ordinal
available e-governance
Agree ☐ Strongly Agree
services?
Research Objective Variable Type Variable Name Question Response Format Measurement Scale

4. To study the role

of demographic
Control Age What is your age? ______ years Ratio
factors in e-
governance adoption

☐ Male ☐ Female ☐
Control Gender What is your gender? Nominal
Other

☐ No formal education
• INDIVIDUALS Control Education Level
What is your highest
level of education?
☐ Primary ☐ Secondary
☐ Higher Secondary ☐
Ordinal
Graduate & above

☐ Unemployed ☐
Student ☐ Self-
What is your
Control Occupation employed ☐ Nominal
occupation?
Government Job ☐
Private Job
 STATISTICS BASED ON SCALE
Scale Type of questions Descriptive Statistics Inferential Statistics
Naming or categorical variables with no
Chi-square test, Fisher’s
inherent order, e.g., gender, ethnicity, Mode, Frequency tables,
Nominal Exact Test, Logistic
marital status Bar charts, Pie charts
Regression, Cramer’s V
Categorical variables with a meaningful
order but no consistent difference between Median, Mode, Mann-Whitney U,
ranks, e.g., Likert scales, education level, Wilcoxon Signed-Rank,
Ordinal Percentiles, IQR,
socioeconomic status Kruskal-Wallis,
Histograms
Spearman’s Correlation
• INDIVIDUALS
Numeric variables with equal intervals but
no true zero, e.g., temperature in T-tests, ANOVA,
Mean, Median, Mode, SD,
Interval Celsius/Fahrenheit, IQ scores Pearson’s Correlation,
Range, Boxplot
Linear Regression

Numeric variables with a true zero point, T-tests, ANOVA,

e.g., height, weight, income, time, age) Mean, Median, Mode, Pearson’s Correlation,
Ratio
Geometric Mean, CV ANCOVA, Regression
Analysis
THANK YOU