PSYCO212 Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: Confounding, Internal Validity, Random Assignment
Document Summary
Learning objectives: types of variables, possible relationships between variables, de ne operational de nition, experimental vs non-experimental research studies. Variables can generate more than one value, varies . Situational variable that describes the situation/circumstance of what is being studied . Participant or subject variable that describes characteristics of individuals who will be participating in the study, this is what they bring to the study . Mediating variable helps explain the relationship between two other variables . Operational de nition de ned by operation/technique used to measure or manipulate a variable . Make an abstract concept concrete via operationalization. Note: many ways to operationalize the same construct. Non-experimental method no manipulation; observe and describe behaviour . Can make correlational explanations, but not causal. Cannot say one came rst temporal precedence . Experimental method involves manipulation of behaviour and later explaining it .