ABSTRACT
Science, in theory, is rooted in systematic observation and measurement. However, despite standards of objectivity, scientists fall prey to the personal biases that skew many other forms of human perception. These biased interpretations, in turn, can lead a field to embrace perspectives that are either overstated, misunderstood, or simply may not exist. This chapter examines how a liberal orientation in social psychology can affect the manner in which scientists use and misuse scales to perpetuate powerful narratives of empowerment and oppression. By reclassifying scales and their meaning post-hoc, ignoring psychometric properties of scales, making logically fallacious assumptions about measures and their meaning, and misinterpreting findings, social scientists have been able to cobble together questionable evidence for theories that align with liberal ideology and worldviews. When one takes a closer look at these scales and their meaning, often new stories emerge that shed light on important processes related to stereotypes, oppression, and resistance that remain overlooked but are nonetheless consequential and may tell a more authentic story. The chapter offers suggestions for avoiding some of these measurement and interpretation pitfalls and outlines a pathway back to the essence of what good science is and how it should be conducted.
