The 5-point vs 7-point Likert scales are commonly chosen in surveys due to their simplicity, comprehensiveness, and effectiveness. These scales have shared features that make them useful in research surveys:
- The 5-point and 7-point Likert scales offer many alternatives, including a neutral midpoint.
- Both scales allow respondents to express their thoughts clearly, helping them understand their choices.
- Likert scale surveys promote honesty and transparency. It encourages honest feedback and improves data quality.
- Likert scales produce structured, quantitative data, allowing researchers to gain actionable insights and make informed judgments.
By using Likert scales, especially the 5-point and 7-point types, organizations can tap into the combined insights of their stakeholders. This helps improve and fine-tune the new product, making it more appealing in the market and increasing customer satisfaction.
5-Point vs 7-Point Likert Scale: Which one should you use?
When deciding between a 5-point vs 7-point Likert scale, it’s important to think about your participants and research objectives. Each scale has its own benefits and factors to consider, which can affect how well your survey is designed.
When conducting surveys for a wide audience, especially when it’s important to keep things simple and clear, you might find the 5-point Likert scale to be a good choice:
- The simple method makes it easy for people to share their feelings quickly.
- The uncomplicated scale is easy for both researchers and participants to understand and use.
- Even though it’s short, the 5-point scale offers different choices, ensuring important insights are gathered.
However, if your research goals demand more detailed and precise feedback, the 7-point Likert scale can be a better choice:
- The 7-point scale provides more choices for answers, helping to better understand what people think in a detailed way.
- This extra detail is useful for research that aims to delve into complicated ideas or collect very specific opinions about products or services.
- Yet, thinking about possible downsides is crucial, like making it harder for people to answer or making data analysis more complex.
When analyzing the results, it’s important to consider the pros and cons of each scale. The seven-point Likert items can give more detailed insights, but it might take more time to analyze, especially in big surveys or when there’s limited time. On the other hand, the 5-point scale is a simpler option that can be more efficient for capturing general sentiments.
Alternative Survey Rating Scales
When conducting a survey, you can use different scales instead of just the Likert scale to get different kinds of feedback. Here are some other survey rating scales that researchers often use:
2-point Survey Scale
- Also known as a dichotomous or binary scale, this scale presents respondents with two absolute options: yes and no, true and false, or agree and disagree.
- Example: “Are you satisfied with the product?” (Options: Yes / No)
3-point Survey Scale
- The 3-point scale offers respondents a middle ground in addition to two extreme opinions, providing a neutral option.
- Example: “How satisfied are you with our onboarding?” (Options: Unhappy / Neutral / Happy)
10-point Survey Scale
- Providing a broader range of options, the 10-point scale allows for more nuanced responses and clearer indications of sentiment.
- Example: “How likely are you to continue with the platform in the next year?” (Options: 1 to 10, with 1 being “Very Unlikely” and 10 being “Very Likely”)
11-point Survey Scale (NPS)
- Utilizing a scale ranging from 0 to 10, the 11-point NPS scale measures customer loyalty towards a brand.
- Promoters: Choose 9 or 10
- Passives: Choose 7 or 8
- Detractors: Choose 0 to 6.
- Example: “How likely are you to recommend our product/service to a friend or colleague?” (Options: 0 to 10)
ACADEMIC SCORES 