Accounting for Uncertainty in the Measurement of Unobservable Marketing Phenomena

Rigdon, Edward E. und Sarstedt, Marko (12. September 2022): Accounting for Uncertainty in the Measurement of Unobservable Marketing Phenomena. In: Review of Marketing Research, Vol. 19: pp. 53-73

Abstract

The assumption that a set of observed variables is a function of an underlying common factor plus some error has dominated measurement in marketing and the social sciences in general for decades. This view of measurement comes with assumptions, which, however, are rarely discussed in research. In this article, we question the legitimacy of several of these assumptions, arguing that (1) the common factor model is rarely correct in the population, (2) the common factor does not correspond to the quantity the researcher intends to measure, and (3) the measurement error does not fully capture the uncertainty associated with measurement. Our discussions call for a fundamental rethinking of measurement in the social sciences. Adapting an uncertainty-centric approach to measurement, which has become the norm in in the physical sciences, offers a means to address the limitations of current measurement practice in marketing.

• Item Type: Journal article
• Keywords: Factor analysis; mesurement; metrology; psychomatrics; structural equation modeling; uncertainty
• Faculties: Munich School of Management > Institute for Marketing
• Subjects: 300 Social sciences > 330 Economics
• ISSN: 1548-6435
• Language: English