CRIM 220 Lecture Notes - Lecture 9: John Stuart Mill, Internal Validity, Dependent And Independent Variables
12 Jan 2017
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Document Summary
Active and intentional manipulation of the setting. Maximize clarifty of inference by controlling rival plausible explanations. Epitomized by laboratory experient experimenter asserts control over every aspect. One of two general approaches to research. Attempts to make inferences about causes take an existing situation and through analytical powers alone, tries to make sense of the causal patterns that exist. Historically, experimentation in social/health sciences has been the route of reliable and dependable knowledge. John stuart mill before we can identify a cause to an effeect, we must demonstrate the following: Temporal precedence: cause comes before the effect (i. e. flipping a switch results in light on/off) Association: statistical relationship of dependence between 2 or more variables/measures i. e. switch flipped = light on; not flipped = light off. Elimination of rival plausible explanations: process that demonstrates x is the putative cause responsible for changes in the dependent variables (not presence of extraneous variables) Variable whose effects we wish to identify/assess.
