Patented
Too Little /
Too Much
Rating Scale

Pushing hard – or rubbing people the wrong way?

Showing concern – or being a pushover?

Minding the details – or micromanaging?

Driving growth – or reaching too far?

It’s common sense that more isn’t always better and that there can be too much of a good thing. But that’s where 5-point scales lead us astray – they don’t distinguish between doing something a lot and doing it too much.

One Third
Of The Time,
5 Is Too Much

A recent study had leaders rated twice on the same behaviors – once with a 5-pt scale and once with the Too Little / Too Much scale. Nearly a third of the 5s actually meant “too much!”

A more useful scale

The Too Little / Too Much scale represents a big step forward by showing leaders the difference between their strengths and strengths overused – and what areas they may need to further strengthen.

The feedback is clear and actionable. It allows a leader and their coach to get straight to work on making adjustments that will make a difference.

U.S. Patent No. 7,121,830

You don’t have to guess

The Too Little / Too Much scale takes the guesswork out of development. No more wondering what to do about that “score of 3.75.” The leader gets clear feedback on what they need to turn up – or down – to get it just right.

Useful advice, without judgement

The LVI gets past the superficial question of what a leader does "good or bad." It focuses on what specific adjustments they could make to be even more effective right now. Feedback is presented not as a grade or evaluation, but as a set of behaviors and skills to be learned, fine-tuned, and flexibly deployed.

Dive into the research

The patented Too Little / Too Much scale was introduced in the early 1990s and has been refined through over a quarter century of research and development published in books and peer-reviewed research articles.

The Too Little / Too Much Scale: A New Rating Format for Detecting Curvilinear Effects

Organizational Research Methods (2017)

A Method for Capturing Context in the Assessment of Leaders: The “Too Little / Too Much” Rating Scale

Industrial and Organizational Psychology (2018)

Overlooking overkill? Beyond the 1-to-5 rating scale

Human Resource Planning (2005)

On the Folly of Linear Rating Scales for a Nonlinear World

Chapter in Performance Appraisal: A Critical View (2005)

Are All Scales Created Equal? Response Format and the Validity of Managerial Ratings

Presented at the 21st Annual SIOP Conference (2006)

Method for collecting, analyzing, and reporting data on skills and personal attributes

U.S. Patent No. 7,121,830, issued October 17, 2006