PSY 301 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Random Assignment, Longitudinal Study, Dependent And Independent Variables
10 May 2016
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Document Summary
An independent variable is any variable that is being manipulated. A dependent variable is any variable that is being measured. A variable is a property that can take on many values. Confounds: factors that undermine the ability to draw causal inferences from an experiment. Correlation: measures the association between two variables, or how they go together. Dependent variable: the variable the researcher measures but does not manipulate in an experiment. Experimenter expectations: when the experimenter"s expectations influence the outcome of a study. Independent variable: the variable the researcher manipulates and controls in an experiment. Longitudinal study: a study that follows the same group of individuals over time. Operational definitions: how researchers specifically measure a concept. Participant demand: when participants behave in a way that they think the experimenter wants them to behave. Placebo effect: when receiving special treatment or something new affects human behavior. Quasi-experimental design: an experiment that does not require random assignment to conditions.
