Experiments and Variables

An experiment is a research method that involves the direct manipulation of an IV in order to test
it's possible casual effect on a DV.
An Independent Variable = The variable made to change by the experimenter
A Dependent Variable = the outcome of another variable measured by the effect of the IV
Confounding Variable = sed intentionally by the researcher
!xtraneous Variable = variables "hich are unexpected or caused by environmental factors
The researcher usually needs to run his research in at least t"o conditions to ensure proper control
for other influences on the results and so that a comparison can be made bet"een them.
These conditions are called the control groups and the experimental groups
Hypotheses
A hypothesis is a testable statement about the relationship bet"een t"o variables # it is the
prediction of the researcher.
!xperimental = the prediction that the manipulation of the IV "ill have an effect on the DV
$ne#tailed = states the direction of difference bet"een t"o conditions or t"o groups of participants
T"o#tailed = only predicts that there "ill be a difference bet"een % conditions&groups of
participants
'ull = prediction that the results obtained in the experiment "ill be due to chance or to some other
factor not covered by the experimental hypothesis( it is used for statistical purposes to evaluate the
results
Operationalisation
This means specifying a set of operations or behaviours that can be measured or manipulated. The
purpose of this is to ensure that the variables are in a form that can be easily tested # other people
must be able to carry out the exact same experiment to see similar results.
This is a bit li)e your procedure in the research investigation.
Experimental Design
An !xperimental design is a set of procedures used to control the influence of participant variables
in an experiment.
*e have three types "hich "e must )no" about+ Independent measures&groups, repeated measures
and matched pairs+
Independent measures&groups design+
-articipants are randomly allocated to t"o or more groups, each representing different experimental
conditions.
The problem "ith this design is that the difference in results .the DV/ might be due to the
differences bet"een the participants .participant variables/ and nothing to do "ith the IV, and you
may need t"ice as many participants because there are t"o groups.
-articipants are randomly allocated to ensure groups are e0uivalent, and you may use matched pairs
design.
1epeated measures design+
Involves using the same participants in all conditions of the IV.
-roblems+ one condition may be more difficult that the others and this may affect results,
participants may be able to guess the purpose of the experiment after the first condition and this
may affect their behaviour i.e do "orse on purpose, order of conditions may affect participants
performance
2olutions+ 3ou can ma)e sure that the tests are e0uivalent, you can lie to them about the purpose of
the study to prevent them from guessing, you can use counterbalancing
Counterbalancing = an experimental techni0ue designed to overcome order effects to ensure that
each condition is tested first or second in e0ual amounts. This is still a repeated measures design as
the final analysis involves the comparison of the t"o .or more/ conditions.
The main advantage is that there is no need to control participant variables as you use the same
participants throughout each condition.
4atched -airs design+
"hen pairs of participants are matched in terms of )ey variables such as age or I5.
A disadvantage is that the researcher "ill not be able to control other participant variables "hich she
)no"s nothing about.
problems+ time#consuming to match participants, cannot control all participant variables
2olutions+ 6ust don't use matched pairs design.
Experimental Control
An extraneous variable is basically any other variables in an experiment other than the IV "hich
may influence the DV.
!xamples of !V are participant variables and situational variables.7
examples of participant variables could be similar or dissimilar characteristics .age, I5, motivation
or experience/ or irrelevant participant variables.
2ituational variables are factors in the environment "hich may affect the DV for example, the order
effect, the investigator effect, participant effect, time of day, temperature, noise
Investigators use standardised procedures to deal "ith situational variables to ensure that all
participants are tested under the same conditions, so that it is clear that the results are due to the IV
and not the difference in procedures used.
Investigators use standardised instructions to deal "ith investigator effects to ensure as much as
possible that communication "ith participants are similar and contain no hints about research aims
or expectations.
Types of Experiments
8ab !xperiments+ an experiment carried out in the controlled setting of a laboratory "here variables
can be controlled carefully. They have lo" mundane realism( it doesn't properly mirror the real
"orld. -articipants are a"are that they are being studied, and this may lead to the participant effect.
8ab experiments are criticised for being artificial, and it is said that the IV or DV may be
operationalised in such a "ay that it 6ust doesn't represent real life experiences
9ut it also has it's advantages+ it is "ell controlled so confounding variables are minimised, t can be
easily replicated
:ield !xperiment+ A controlled experiment conducted outside of a laboratory # the IV is still
deliberately manipulated.
-roblems&"ea)nesses+ it may not be ethical to manipulate and record participants behaviours if they
una"are that they are being studied, it is more difficult to control extraneous variables "hich lo"ers
the certainty that the results are purely due to the IV, they are more time#consuming and thus more
expensive
2trengths+ 8ess artificial and has higher mundane realism due to the natural situation it is conducted
in, there is a reduction in the participant effect as participants are not a"are that they are being
studied
'atural !xperiment: "hen an IV cannot be directly manipulated, and so the researcher has to ma)e
use of a variable that has been naturally changed. In this experiment
*ea)nesses+ casual conclusions cannot be dra"n as the IV has not been manipulated directly by the
researcher, there is li)ely to be many confounding variables, can only be used "here conditions
vary naturally
2tengths+ enables psychologists to study problems related to real life, allo"s research "here IV
can't be manipulated by the experimener.