Why Not to Use a 10-Point Scale? The Hidden Flaws You Need to Know

The Popularity of the 10-Point Scale: But Is It Effective?

Let’s be honest. When it comes to grading, reviews, or surveys, the 10-point scale is everywhere, right? Whether it’s a movie rating, a test score, or even a product review, the 10-point scale seems to be the go-to. But have you ever stopped to think about whether it really works? Well, after chatting with a few friends and diving into this topic, I’m starting to realize that there’s more to it than we think.

Sure, it’s easy to use and gives a quick sense of evaluation, but is it truly accurate? And more importantly, does it really measure what we intend it to measure? Let’s break it down.

The Lack of Precision: Does It Really Capture Nuance?

The Illusion of Simplicity

The thing with the 10-point scale is that it looks simple, but that simplicity can be a trap. When you ask someone to rate something from 1 to 10, it’s easy to think that you’re getting a full, nuanced opinion. But in reality, it can be super vague.

A 7 on a 10-point scale can mean completely different things depending on the person, context, or even their mood at the time of rating. I was talking to a friend the other day who said that he rated his lunch as a 7 out of 10. I asked him what that meant, and he couldn’t really explain it – he just felt like it wasn’t perfect but wasn’t awful either. That’s the problem: lack of clarity. You can have 5 people giving a score of 7, and each person could mean something completely different by that number.

Ambiguity at Play

One thing that becomes super frustrating is the lack of clarity that comes with the middle scores, like 5, 6, or 7. They end up being so broad that they lose their meaning entirely. In a more detailed rating system (maybe something like 1 to 100), you could differentiate between a slightly above-average movie and one that’s almost perfect. But a 7 and an 8? The difference can feel like splitting hairs, and that’s where the 10-point scale starts to lose its effectiveness.

The Psychological Effect: How a 10-Point Scale Influences Us

The Bias of Middle Scores

Another thing I’ve realized after reading about this is how our perception of the scale is influenced by the way we think about numbers. We often want to avoid giving extremes – either a 1 or a 10 – because of the stigma they carry. So, we naturally land somewhere in the middle.

When I was in school, I remember giving a lot of “safe” scores to assignments and exams. I'd give something a 6 or 7, thinking it was “good enough,” even if I knew it didn’t truly deserve that rating. Middle scores like 6 and 7 are just easy numbers to go with, but they don’t always reflect the real performance or the quality of what’s being rated.

In essence, we end up with a lot of “meh” ratings that don’t actually help us make decisions or draw conclusions.

The Extremes: Are They Overlooked?

But what about the other end of the scale? Have you noticed how a 1 or 10 stands out more than any other number? You almost never see 1s or 10s unless someone is either very disappointed or very impressed. This bias towards avoiding extremes (unless something is really exceptional) skews the overall feedback or grading. It's something I caught myself doing in a recent product review. I ended up giving it a 6 because it wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t amazing either. It made me wonder: should I have been more specific in my reasoning instead of just using the middle ground?

The Misleading Nature of the 10-Point Scale in Surveys

Oversimplification of Complex Opinions

You’ve seen it – those surveys that ask you to rate a service, product, or experience from 1 to 10. Sure, they give you a quick way to measure customer satisfaction, but does a single number really give the company anything useful? A score of 9 might be great, but it doesn’t tell them why it was great or what could be improved.

Imagine rating your overall customer service experience as an 8. Great, but does that score help the company understand what made the experience good or where they can improve? Without further explanation, a simple number doesn’t capture your true feelings or provide actionable feedback.

Can We Get More Out of a Rating System?

Here’s the thing: if we could expand the scale, or add some open-ended questions to give context, wouldn’t it help? With a wider range or more detailed question prompts, you could identify whether people are happy with the quality, price, or customer service. I recently gave feedback for an app I use, and instead of just rating the app with a 9, I could choose to elaborate on why I loved it and what could be improved. That extra detail made my feedback more useful and meaningful.

Conclusion: Should We Ditch the 10-Point Scale?

So, why not use a 10-point scale? Honestly, it’s not that we should throw it away entirely, but we do need to be aware of its limitations. The simplicity that makes it popular is also what makes it ineffective in providing detailed, actionable insights. It’s too vague, it invites biases, and it doesn’t always reflect the full complexity of opinions or experiences.

The next time you encounter a 10-point scale, whether in a survey or as a grading tool, think about whether it’s truly giving you the answers you need. Maybe it’s time to embrace a more precise or nuanced approach – one that goes beyond the simplicity of a number and digs deeper into understanding.

Is 165 cm normal for a 15 year old?

The predicted height for a female, based on your parents heights, is 155 to 165cm. Most 15 year old girls are nearly done growing. I was too. It's a very normal height for a girl.

Is 160 cm too tall for a 12 year old?

How Tall Should a 12 Year Old Be? We can only speak to national average heights here in North America, whereby, a 12 year old girl would be between 137 cm to 162 cm tall (4-1/2 to 5-1/3 feet). A 12 year old boy should be between 137 cm to 160 cm tall (4-1/2 to 5-1/4 feet).

How tall is a average 15 year old?

Average Height to Weight for Teenage Boys - 13 to 20 Years

How to get taller at 18?

Staying physically active is even more essential from childhood to grow and improve overall health. But taking it up even in adulthood can help you add a few inches to your height. Strength-building exercises, yoga, jumping rope, and biking all can help to increase your flexibility and grow a few inches taller.

Is 5.7 a good height for a 15 year old boy?

Generally speaking, the average height for 15 year olds girls is 62.9 inches (or 159.7 cm). On the other hand, teen boys at the age of 15 have a much higher average height, which is 67.0 inches (or 170.1 cm).

Can you grow between 16 and 18?

Most girls stop growing taller by age 14 or 15. However, after their early teenage growth spurt, boys continue gaining height at a gradual pace until around 18. Note that some kids will stop growing earlier and others may keep growing a year or two more.

Can you grow 1 cm after 17?

Even with a healthy diet, most people's height won't increase after age 18 to 20. The graph below shows the rate of growth from birth to age 20. As you can see, the growth lines fall to zero between ages 18 and 20 ( 7 , 8 ). The reason why your height stops increasing is your bones, specifically your growth plates.