Repeated measures

A repeated measures (or related samples) design is where each participant takes part in
both (or more) conditions of the IV.
A repeated measures design is a type of experimental design in which the same participants
are tested in all conditions of the experiment. This design is often used when it is not feasible
or ethical to have different participants in each condition. For example, if you are studying
the effects of a new medication on memory, you would not want to give the medication to
one group of people and a placebo to another group, because then you would not know if
any changes in memory were due to the medication or to other factors, such as the placebo
effect.

For example:

Condition 1. Condition 2

Same participant A. Participant A

Same participant B. Participant B

Same participant C Participant C

Strengths of repeated measures designs

This design is best for the control of participant variables, because the same people do both
conditions and their level of intelligence, motivation and many other factors remain the same
throughout.

Repeated measures designs can be more efficient than other designs. Because the same
participants are tested in all conditions, the researcher needs to recruit fewer participants
overall. This can save time and money.

Limitations of repeated measures designs

Some experiments are impossible to do as a repeated measures design, eg, a participant

cannot be both left-handed and right-handed or both male and female.
if a participant completes both conditions then it may be necessary to duplicate apparatus,
such as word lists. But, how can the lists be balanced so they are of equal difficulty? It may
be better to use a different type of design.

Repeated measures designs can be more time-consuming than other designs. This is
because the same participants need to be tested multiple times.

A major flaw is that the design can create order effects. If a participant performs an activity
twice they may become tired or bored the second time it may result as the fatigue effect and
the result is different from the first time. It might be that the second result is much better than
the first because the participant knew what to expect or treated the first as a practice. This is
simply known as the practice effect

How to control order effects

One way to eliminate order effects is to counterbalance. This is where participant 1 performs
in condition 1 first and then condition 2, participant 2 performs in condition 2 and then
condition 1, and so on. As a result, both practice and fatigue effects are controlled.

Repeated measures designs are a valuable tool for researchers who want to control for
participant variables and save time and money. However, it is important to be aware of the
limitations of this design and to take steps to control order effects.