Factor analysis of category and magnitude scales of a technical attribute

Abstract

36 journeymen electronics maintenance personnel judged the complexity of 16 avionics circuits using the paired-comparison, magnitude-estimation, rank-order, and constant-sum procedures on 2 occasions. The basic scale values were standardized across the 16 circuits separately within each method and occasion. The standardized scale values were then intercorrelated and factor analyzed to test the hypothesis that 2 factors would account for the data. After considering 1-, 2-, 3-, and 4-factor solutions, a 2-factor solution was chosen as best fitting the data. These 2 factors suggested the taxonomy of "congnitive discrimination" and "contextual uncertainty" to account for Ss' scaling behavior. Most frequently, the paired-comparison and the constant-sum methods were most heavily loaded on Factor 1, "cognitive discrimination." The rank-order and the magnitude-estimation methods were most consistently loaded heaviest on "contextual uncertainty," Factor 2. The findings are interpreted in terms of their relationship to certain customary scaling classificatory schemes. (24 ref.) (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved)