In the Likert scale, why did individuals may respond variably to items within the same construct. Even if they are derived from the same concept.
The diversity of responses in the Likert scale arises from the complexity of individual contextual (mood, mindset, physiological state, etc.), and conceptual factors (how they are formulated, presented, or interpreted; the inherent subjectivity in evaluating abstract concepts can lead to variations in responses) that influence the perception and evaluation of a given subject.
I am adding to the answer given by Dr. Khoulod Razki above:
(1) Individuals may employ different coping strategies when faced with items within a construct. These strategies can stem from their coping mechanisms, problem-solving approaches, or personal preferences (Coping Strategies).
(2) Measurement instruments may not be perfect, and items may have inherent ambiguities or flaws. These imperfections can contribute to response variability as individuals interpret items differently (Measurement Error).
However, we should keep developing measurement scales following Peter Drucker, a management thinker, who is often quoted as saying that "you can't manage what you can't measure."
To add to Khouloud Razki and Dr Amit Kumar , one of the very reasons (if not the most important reason) why we typically use multiple items for a single concept is that responses can vary intra-individually due to measurement error and other factors. To increase the reliability and validity of a scale, we would typically not rely on just a single item. Latent variable methods (measurement models) such as derived from item response theory (IRT) and classical test theory/factor analysis are based on the idea that we use repeated measurements (multiple items or scales) of the same attributes so that we can separate measurement error (and/or unique = item-specific variance) from true score (reliable or "common") variance.
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