The role of mathematical models in measurement: A perspective from psychometrics

Abstract

The paper uses the functional concept of a measuring system, as developed by Mari [1], to explicate the logic of several measurement approaches used in psychometrics, and thus enable a comparison with measurement approaches used by other fields such as engineering and physics. This characterization contrasts with the stereotype of measurement in the social and behavioral sciences, which is seen (from without) as typically following the representational viewpoint. The paper surveys Guttman Scaling, Classical Test Theory, Rasch Scaling and Construct Modeling, as examples of measurement approaches in the area of psychometrics, and explicates the underlying standard reference set that is one of ..