- Conceptual understanding: To acquire a deep theoretical understanding of what unidimensional scaling is, its assumptions, and its limitations within psychological research.
- Methodological knowledge: To learn the different methods of unidimensional scaling (direct and indirect), understanding the procedures for their construction and application.
- Practical skill: To develop the ability to concretely apply the techniques of unidimensional scaling to measure psychological constructs such as attitudes, opinions, perceptions, preferences, and satisfaction.
- Critical evaluation: To be able to critically evaluate the adequacy and validity of unidimensional scales in specific research contexts, recognizing their strengths and weaknesses.

Prerequisites and basic notions

Not required

Program

"Unidimensional scaling is “a set of techniques” for representing data, objects, or entities (items in general) along a single linear scale based on a specific attribute or characteristic. Unidimensional scaling arranges items/objects on a one-dimensional axis so that their positions reflect variations or similarities in the chosen attribute.
This seminar will explore the methods of Indirect and Direct Unidimensional Scaling in depth. Unidimensional scaling is widely applied to measure opinions, attitudes, perceptions, etc., and to assess satisfaction or preferences. The primary aim of unidimensional scaling is to create a straightforward representation of data along a single scale, allowing for clear comparison and analysis of the attribute in question and reducing complex information to a single, easily interpretable format."

Bibliography

Vai alla bibliografia

Visualizza la bibliografia con Leganto, strumento che il Sistema Bibliotecario mette a disposizione per recuperare i testi in programma d'esame in modo semplice e innovativo.

Didactic methods

Frontal lesson

Learning assessment procedures

Since this is a seminar, there is no exam.

Students with disabilities or specific learning disorders (SLD), who intend to request the adaptation of the exam, must follow the instructions given HERE

Assessment

Since this is a seminar, there are no evaluation criteria.

Criteria for the composition of the final grade

Since this is a non-exam seminar, there is no grade.

Scheduled Lessons

When	Classroom	Teacher	topics
Thursday 18 December 2025 09:00 - 11:00 Duration: 2:00 AM	Chiostro S. Maria della Vittoria - S.R. T.15 [T.15 - Terra]	Roberto Burro	Unidimensional scaling is "a set of techniques" for representing data, objects, or entities (elements in general) along a single linear scale based on a specific attribute or characteristic. Unidimensional scaling arranges elements/objects on a one-dimensional axis so that their positions reflect variations or similarities in the chosen attribute. This seminar will explore in depth the methods of Indirect and Direct Unidimensional Scaling. Unidimensional scaling is widely applied to measure opinions, attitudes, perceptions, etc., and to assess satisfaction or preferences. The primary goal of unidimensional scaling is to create a straightforward representation of the data along a single scale, allowing for clear comparison and analysis of the attribute in question and reducing complex information to a single, easily interpretable format.
Friday 19 December 2025 09:00 - 11:00 Duration: 2:00 AM	Chiostro S. Maria della Vittoria - S.R. T.15 [T.15 - Terra]	Roberto Burro	Unidimensional scaling is "a set of techniques" for representing data, objects, or entities (elements in general) along a single linear scale based on a specific attribute or characteristic. Unidimensional scaling arranges elements/objects on a one-dimensional axis so that their positions reflect variations or similarities in the chosen attribute. This seminar will explore in depth the methods of Indirect and Direct Unidimensional Scaling. Unidimensional scaling is widely applied to measure opinions, attitudes, perceptions, etc., and to assess satisfaction or preferences. The primary goal of unidimensional scaling is to create a straightforward representation of the data along a single scale, allowing for clear comparison and analysis of the attribute in question and reducing complex information to a single, easily interpretable format.

Sustainable Development Goals - SDGs

This initiative contributes to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN Agenda 2030. More information on sustainability

PhD programme in Human Sciences

PhDs

Training and Research

PhD Programme Courses/classes

How to use the APA publication manual

Welcome to the desert of the real

From research design to impact in a Marie-Curie Post-doc project

The empirical phenomenological method (EPM): theoretical foundation and empirical application in educational and healthcare fields

How to write an abstract

Research validity and methodological rigor: reviewers perspective

Welcome to the desert of the real

The challenge of measuring psychological constructs

How to write a project proposal

How to write a research article

The development of research-based curricula addressed to people with intellectual disabilities

Action research: theoretical framework and practical examples

Inhabiting the desert: desert methodologies

METEOR: Methodologies for Teamworking in Eco-Outwards Research

Surviving in the desert. How to find fundings to continue research after PhD: European calls

Research design (between-subjects, within subjects and mixed designs)

Research design (two/three-waves and longitudinal designs)

Seeing the Literature through a PRISMA: the gold-standard for systematic and scoping reviews

Using a PRISMA: practical exercises for a systematic review: from the pre-registration to the stars

The systematic review of qualitative studies

Metodi di Scaling Unidimensionale

Mastering Research Methods in Psychology: A Synthesis Workshop

DOING INTERVIEWS IN QUALITATIVE RESEARCH

DESIGNING AND CONDUCTING FOCUS GROUPS

Design, Construction and Dissemination of an Online Empirical Study through the QUALTRICS platform

Qualitative data analysis

OPEN SCIENCE: THE MIGHTY STICK AGAINST "BAD" SCIENCE

Mastering your path: Ph.D.’s career

AI and research ethics

Theoretical perspectives in sociology: The problem of common sense

Mixed method research in education: design, data analysis

Quantitative and qualitative research methods for research and evaluation in the human sciences

Introduzione alla Social Network Analysis

Ethnographic fieldwork and participant observation: an introduction

La ricerca d'archivio nelle scienze umane

Against genetic determinism: information and computation in the living and the machine

Culture and care of well-being in social policies and social work

Culture e cure del benessere nelle politiche e nel servizio sociale

Devising a research project: interdisciplinary perspectives

Experiencing Bibliometric Analysis: From Concepts to Visualization

Getting started on your teaching - TaLC meeting

Inhabiting the desert: writing in the desert

Trustworthiness in qualitative research design and dissemination. A case analysis on 'rug methodology'

Why simultaneous bilingual development is not easy

Metodi di Scaling Unidimensionale (2025/2026)

Learning objectives