Likert Scale: A Ruler for Opinions
A Likert scale turns subjective feelings into data by asking users to rate their agreement with a statement on a balanced scale. It's used in UX surveys to gauge attitudes.
Why it exists
We often need to measure subjective concepts like satisfaction, agreement, or importance. A Likert scale provides a structured way to convert these qualitative feelings into quantitative data that can be analyzed. It was created by Rensis Likert to standardize how we measure attitudes.
The mental model
Think of it as a ruler for opinions. Instead of inches or centimeters, the markings are labels like 'Strongly Disagree,' 'Disagree,' 'Neutral,' 'Agree,' and 'Strongly Agree.' You're not just asking 'yes/no,' but 'how much?' on a predefined spectrum.
How it works
A researcher presents a declarative statement, like 'The new checkout process is easy to use.' The respondent then chooses the option from a symmetric scale that best represents their level of agreement. The scales are typically 5 or 7 points to provide a neutral midpoint. Each response is assigned a numeric value (e.g., 1 for 'Strongly Disagree' up to 5 for 'Strongly Agree') for analysis.
When to use it
Use a Likert scale when you need to measure the intensity of a person's attitude on a specific topic. It's ideal for user satisfaction surveys, usability testing feedback, and market research questionnaires where you want more nuance than a simple yes/no answer.
When not to use it
Avoid it for measuring objective facts (e.g., 'Did you complete the purchase?'). Also, be cautious when analyzing the results. Because the scale is ordinal (the order matters, but the distance between points is not uniform), performing mathematical operations like calculating a mean is statistically controversial. It's often better to analyze frequencies and modes, such as '45% of users Strongly Agreed'.
One canonical example
A classic post-purchase survey asks: 'The checkout process was simple and straightforward.' The user is presented with five options: 1. Strongly Disagree, 2. Disagree, 3. Neither Agree nor Disagree, 4. Agree, 5. Strongly Agree. The collected responses can then be tallied to understand overall user sentiment.
Interview question
For which scenario would a Likert scale be the most appropriate measurement tool?
- a.Collecting detailed, unstructured feedback on user experience.
- b.Determining the exact number of times a specific feature was used.
- c.Understanding the degree of agreement users have with a product statement.Correct
- d.Assessing whether users successfully completed a task.
Why? this is the answer
A Likert scale is specifically designed to quantify the intensity of subjective attitudes or agreement with a statement, as described in the card. Options A and D involve measuring objective facts or usage data, which the card advises against using a Likert scale for. Option A describes open-ended qualitative feedback, which is distinct from the structured, scaled responses of a Likert item.
Just read this? Test yourself on what you have been reading.
Read the original → en.wikipedia.org
- #ux research
- #surveys
- #data collection
- #psychometrics
Put your scrolling time to good use
Learn one idea, try a quiz and save useful cards for revision. Tezvyn makes it easy to learn and stay current in your tech field, a few minutes at a time.
The iPhone app is on the way
We are building it. Until it lands, nothing here is held back from you: every interview card, your saved cards, streaks and the job board all work in Safari, plus hundreds of free practice quizzes of thirty questions each. Sign in and it all carries over to the app the day it arrives.
Want it as an icon? Tap Share at the bottom of Safari, then Add to Home Screen. It opens full screen and the cards you have read stay available offline.
We are hiring for this. Open roles that interview on ux research — each one lists the topics its interview covers.
See open roles