Which recording is a rating scale that measures the intensity or severity of behavior and is considered subjective?

• A. Ratings Recording
• B. Narrative recording
• C. Event recording
• D. Interval recording

Answer: (A)

Rating scales capture how intense or severe a behavior is by having an observer assign a subjective rating on a scale (for example, 0 to 5). Because it relies on the observer’s judgment of the strength or gravity of the behavior, it is inherently subjective rather than an exact count or presence/absence measure.

In contrast, event recording counts each occurrence, which is an objective measure of frequency. Interval recording notes whether the behavior occurred during each defined interval, giving a yes/no snapshot of presence rather than intensity. Narrative recording provides a descriptive account without a standardized scale for how strong the behavior was.

So, the rating scale is the method that measures intensity or severity through subjective judgment.