{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,23]],"date-time":"2026-01-23T10:11:27Z","timestamp":1769163087872,"version":"3.49.0"},"reference-count":7,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"2","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2010,1,28]],"date-time":"2010-01-28T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1264636800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/3.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Entropy"],"abstract":"<jats:p>We apply Shannon entropy as a measure of information content in survey data, and define information efficiency as the empirical entropy divided by the maximum attainable entropy. In a case study of the Norwegian Function Assessment Scale, entropy calculations show that the 5-point response version has higher information efficiency than the 4-point version.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/e12020161","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2010,1,28]],"date-time":"2010-01-28T13:03:45Z","timestamp":1264683825000},"page":"161-163","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":13,"title":["Quantifying Information Content in Survey Data by Entropy"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"12","author":[{"given":"Fredrik A.","family":"Dahl","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Helse S\u00f8r-\u00d8st Health Services Research Centre, Akershus University Hospital, Mail drawer 95, NO-1474 L\u00f8renskog, Norway"}]},{"given":"Nina","family":"\u00d8ster\u00e5s","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"The National Resource Centre in Rheumatology, Diakonhjemmet hospital, P.O. Box 23 Vinderen, NO-0319 Oslo, Norway"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2010,1,28]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","first-page":"27","article-title":"Scale development: theory and applications","volume":"26","author":"DeVellis","year":"2003","journal-title":"Appl. Soc. Res. Method. Ser."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"379","DOI":"10.1002\/j.1538-7305.1948.tb01338.x","article-title":"A mathematical theory of communication","volume":"27","author":"Shannon","year":"1948","journal-title":"Bell Syst. Tech. J."},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"499","DOI":"10.1007\/s10463-005-0013-9","article-title":"An information-theoretic approach to the effective usage of auxiliary information from survey data","volume":"58","author":"Wu","year":"2006","journal-title":"Ann. Inst. Statist. Math."},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"698","DOI":"10.1046\/j.1538-7836.2003.00139.x","article-title":"The role of Bayesian networks in the diagnosis of pulmonary embolism","volume":"1","author":"Luciani","year":"2003","journal-title":"J. Thromb. Haemostasis"},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"244","DOI":"10.1093\/oxfordjournals.aje.a116490","article-title":"Issues in Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) screening programs","volume":"136","author":"Tu","year":"1992","journal-title":"Am. J. Epidemiol."},{"key":"ref_6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"407","DOI":"10.1177\/002224378001700401","article-title":"The optimal number of response alternatives for a scale: A review","volume":"17","author":"Cox","year":"1980","journal-title":"J. Market Res."},{"key":"ref_7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"14","DOI":"10.1186\/1477-7525-6-14","article-title":"A randomised comparison of a four- and a five-point scale version of the Norwegian Function Assessment Scale","volume":"6","author":"Gulbrandsen","year":"2008","journal-title":"Health Qual. Life Outcomes"}],"container-title":["Entropy"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/1099-4300\/12\/2\/161\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,11]],"date-time":"2025-10-11T22:01:20Z","timestamp":1760220080000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/1099-4300\/12\/2\/161"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2010,1,28]]},"references-count":7,"journal-issue":{"issue":"2","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2010,2]]}},"alternative-id":["e12020161"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/e12020161","relation":{},"ISSN":["1099-4300"],"issn-type":[{"value":"1099-4300","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2010,1,28]]}}}