Type of Content, Type of Score, and Response Inconsistency in Comparison Measures of Preference

Abstract

Three experiments were conducted to determine the influence of type of content and type of score on response inconsistency. Types of content included: color preference, preference for work situations and preference for teacher characteristics. Types of scores were: circular triad score on the upper triangle, circular triad score on the lower triangle, and inconsistency score from a comparison of upper and lower triangles, all scores from a paired-comparison matrix. Results confirmed a previous finding that type of score was a much more significant source of variation than other instrument characteristics (type of content, number of items or item format). Other findings cast doubt on the utility of the types of scores used as measures of a response inconsistency trait.