The use of self-anchoring scale in social psychology research: The Cantril scale for the evaluation of community action orientation

In this study we provide a thorough analysis of the properties of selfanchoring rating scales, that give to respondents the chance to self-anchor according to their responses. In social sciences the reflexive perspective suggests that the researcher’s opinions do not prevail over those of the respondents. Self-anchoring category rating scales seem to fulfill this requirement, since they allow respondents to define the anchor items by referring their personal experiences to the construct being measured. By way of example, we present a research on action in the participants’ social contexts and the criteria defined for its description and measurement, which led to the use of a self-anchoring scale.