2.3 Category scaling
Category scaling frequently is used for the assessment of the loudness of products. Five step scales as well as seven step scales are employed. Five step scales usually are labelled very soft, soft, neither soft nor loud, loud, very loud. In comparison to the five step scale, the seven step scale has in addition the steps slightly soft as well as slightly loud. Therefore, the whole range between very soft and very loud has a finer grading in seven step grades than in five step grades. A variant of category scaling frequently used in audiology or the assessment of noise immissions is the subdivision of a five step scale in ten subcategories each, leading to a 50 point scale5 (Hellbrück 1993). Since the numerical representation of categories may suggest a ceiling effect sometimes the categories inaudible at the low end and too loud at the high end are added to the 50 point scale