On Defining Subjective and Objective Measurements

The adjectives “objective” and “subjective” frequently precede the noun “measurement,” but all too often the terms are used without precision. Kerlinger has described objective measurements in terms of reliability. He states, “An objective procedure is one in which agreement among observers is at maximum. In variance terms, observer variance is at a minimum.”1 Therefore, an objective measurement is one in which there is reasonable intertester (interobserver) reliability. Kerlinger even describes a strategy that can be used to increase the likelihood of obtaining objective measurements.