What are Likert Scales and how do I use them in my survey?

Hey all! It's been a while since I posted on IH - we took a long break from working on @BelliniSlushie, but lately we've been working on it nonstop and are prepping to launch our survey research database soon.

To prep for launch I've written 6 blogs, some that pertain to research best practices, some that pertain to building, and others that are just fun blogs. We just published our 1/6th today, all about Likert Scales, i.e. survey questions like:
How much do you agree or disagree with the following statement:

• Strongly disagree
• Somewhat disagree
• Neither agree or disagree
• Somewhat agree
• Strongly agree

In this article we go over what Likert Scales are, give a use case example, and provide best practices for how to use them correctly.A little tl;dr of the content in 'What are Likert Scales and how do I use them in my survey?':

What are Likert Scales?
Likert Scales are commonly used to understand psychometric traits, attitudes, beliefs, perceptions, and actions of the survey takers. Likert scales allow you to collect data on a granular level so that you can splice and analyze these responses to a greater degree. Sometimes, a simple “yes” or “no” answer doesn’t give you enough insights.

1. What type of scale do I use?
   Likert scales can either be unipolar or bipolar. A bipolar scale gives you the advantage of measuring intensity from both directions of an attribute, usually with a neutral option in the middle. A unipolar scale gives you the advantage of measuring the intensity in one direction of an attribute.

In this section, we go in depth into the difference in the scales and give examples of using both types of scales.

2. Choosing the number of points for your scale:
   Once you select which type of scale you’re going to use, the next step is choosing the number of points for the scale. Likert scales usually range from a 3-10 point scale, 4, 5 and 7 being the most common points.

In this section, we cover the pros and cons of using a small number of points on the scale vs a large number of points on the scale.

3. Keeping the measurement on your scale unbiased:
   No matter what point scale you select, it’s important to have consistent measurements across your scale. Inconsistency can confuse the respondent, bias responses, and ruin the data.

In this section, we cover how to be consistent in your scales measurements and why this is so important .

4. Rating multiple statements at once:
   If you’re using the same Likert scale in multiple questions, you can rank multiple questions or statements rated at once instead of individually.

In this section, we go over how you can rate more than one question at the same time.

To read more in depth explanations and analysis on Likert Scales, check out our newest blog here!: http://bit.ly/38e20ib

As always, if you have any questions about running user research, surveys, etc: happy to answer any questions :)