The Thurstone scale is a method used in social science research to measure attitudes and opinions. Developed by Louis Leon Thurstone in the 1920s, it involves creating a set of statements about a particular topic. Respondents indicate their level of agreement with each statement, allowing researchers to quantify attitudes on a scale. This scale is designed to capture the intensity of feelings rather than just the direction of opinion. By assigning numerical values to each statement, researchers can analyze the data to understand how strongly individuals feel about a subject, making it a valuable tool in fields like psychology and sociology.