Independent and Dependent Variables

Operational Definitions
Evaluating Operational Definitions
Planning the Method Section
 Objectives:

• Learn the two types of variables that are the focus

of an experiment.
• Understand how variables are defined in an
experiment.
• Understand the importance of reliability and validity.
• Learn about problems caused by extraneous
variables and confounding.
Activity:
Written below are examples of variables that an
experimenter may explore. Select at least two, and
label which is the IV and DV.
Resiliency Impostor Voting behavior Fear
syndrome

Attachment Helping Stress Story-telling

style behavior

Test scores Embarrassment Parenting style Self-efficacy

Extraversion Emotional Appetite Attention span

intelligence

Marital Status Attraction Light Color of

highlighters
Independent and Dependent Variables
Operational Definitions
Evaluating Operational Definitions
Planning the Method Section
 Main Features of Psychological Experiments:

1. We manipulate the antecedent conditions to create at

least two different treatment conditions.
- We need at least 2 so that we can make statements
about the impact of different sets of antecedents.
2. We expose subjects to different treatment conditions
so that we can measure the effects of those conditions
on behavior.
3. We record the responses or behaviors of subjects
under various conditions and then compare them using
statistics.
4. We then assess whether our predictions are confirmed.

The Basics of Experimentation

• When conducted skillfully, an experiment allows us to
make cause-and-effect statements about behavior.
• If behavior changes as the antecedent conditions
change, we can say that the differences in antecedent
conditions caused the changes in behavior.
• However, a causal inference is justified only when a
carefully controlled test of our predictions has been
made, and a researcher must consider several
influences that can threaten an experiment’s internal
validity.

The Basics of Experimentation

In an experiment, variables are measurable
elements that can vary or take on different
values along dimension.

The experimental hypothesis expresses a

potential relationship between 2 kinds of
variables – the IV and the DV.

Independent and Dependent Variables

 What is an independent variable?

An independent variable (IV) is the variable

(antecedent condition) an experimenter
intentionally manipulates.
Levels of an independent variable are the
values of the IV created by the experimenter.
An experiment requires at least two levels.
• e.g. test if the color of the paper influences the scores.
• IV – color of the paper
• Levels – pink, blue, yellow, green, etc.

Independent and Dependent Variables

 What is an independent variable?

In true experiment, we have to make certain that

our treatment groups do not consist of people
who are different on preexisting characteristics.

To guard against systematic differences in

people in our treatment groups, we randomly
assign subjects to receive different treatments.

Independent and Dependent Variables

 Explain confounding.

An experiment is confounded when the value

of an extraneous variable systematically
changes along with the independent variable.
Confounding variable is an outside influence
that changes the effect of IV and DV.
For example, we could confound our experiment
if we ran experimental subjects in the morning
and control subjects at night.

Independent and Dependent Variables

 Explain confounding.

Strategies to reduce confounding:

•Randomization (aim is random distribution of
confounders between study groups)
•Restriction (restrict entry to study of individuals with
confounding factors – risks bias in itself)
•Matching (of individuals or groups, aim for equal
distribution of confounders)
•Stratification (confounders are distributed evenly within
each stratum)
•Adjustment (usually distorted by choice standards)
•Multivariate analysis (only works if you can identify
and measure the confounders).

Independent and Dependent Variables

 What is a dependent variable?

A dependent variable is the outcome measure

the experimenter uses to assess the change in
behavior produced by the independent variable.
The dependent variable depends on the value
of the independent variable.
Because we manipulate the IV and measure its
effects on the DV, the latter are sometimes
called dependent measures.

Independent and Dependent Variables

 Some Research Examples

Stanley Schachter (1950s)

•Hypothesis: If people are anxious, then they will want to
affiliate, or be, with others.
•Procedures:
– Subjects were brought to the room with an experimenter who
was wearing horn-rimmed glasses and white laboratory coat.
– The experiment was explained to be on the effects of electric
shock.
– The subjects were split into 2 groups: (1) was shown some
elaborate electrical equipment and led to expect painful shocks;
(2) received instructions leading them to believe they would feel
no pain.
 Some Research Examples

Schachter
•Procedures:
– The group that expected pain was anticipated to be more
anxious than the group that did not.
– The experimenter then explained that there would be a delay
while the experiment was being set up and asked the subjects to
indicate on a questionnaire whether they preferred to wait for the
next part of the experiment alone, with other subjects, or had no
preference.
– Based on hypothesis, those subjects who were more anxious
would be more likely to want to wait with others.
 Some Research Examples

Eckhard Hess (1975)

•Hypothesis: Large pupils make people more attractive.
•Hess asked male subjects to rate four photographs of two
women. The photographs were retouched so that each
woman had small pupils in one photograph and large pupils
in another.
•Subjects were asked to select which woman in series of
pairs of these photographs appeared to be more friendly,
charming and so on.
•The IV was the pupil size and the DV was attractiveness.
 Identifying Variables

Independent variable: What did the

experimenter manipulate? What will you vary to
test the hypothesis?
Dependent variable: What was used to assess
the effect of the IV? What behavior are you trying
to explain? What will you measure to find out
whether your IV had an effect?

Independent and Dependent Variables

 What is an operational definition?

We all have conceptual notions about different things, but

because one criterion of science is replicability, it is not
enough to have only conceptual definitions.
The definition of each variable may change from one
experiment to another. When we run the experiment, we
naturally want to be sure that others will understand what
we have done.
Thus, each IV and DV has 2 definitions: (1) conceptual
definition (used in everyday language); (2) operational
definition (used in carrying out the experiment).

Operational Definitions
 What is an operational definition?

An operational definition specifies the exact

meaning of a variable in an experiment by
defining it in terms of observable operations,
procedures, and measurements.
There are 2 kinds of operational definitions:
experimental and measured.

Operational Definitions
 What is an operational definition?

An experimental operational definition

specifies the exact procedure for creating
values of the independent variable.
A measured operational definition specifies
the exact procedure for measuring the
dependent variable.

Operational Definitions
 What is an operational definition?

The need for operational definitions becomes

easily apparent when we zero in on variables
that are actually hypothetical constructs or
concepts.
Constructs cannot be observed directly, but we
can infer their existence from behaviors that we
can observe.

Operational Definitions
 Defining Scales of Measurement

In setting up experiments, researchers also consider

available scales of measurement for each variable.
When we have a choice between different levels of
measurement, we generally choose the highest level
possible because it provides more information about the
variable.
The statistical tests we can use for interval or ratio data
are more powerful than those for nominal and ordinal
data, making ratio and interval scales preferred by
researchers.

Operational Definitions
 What are the properties of a nominal scale?

A nominal scale assigns items to two or more

distinct categories that can be named using a
shared feature, but does not measure their
magnitude.

Example: you can sort canines into friendly and

shy categories.

Evaluating Operational Definitions

 What are the properties of an ordinal scale?

An ordinal scale measures the magnitude of

the dependent variable using ranks, but does
not assign precise values.
This scale allows us to make statements about
relative speed, but not precise speed, like a
runner’s place in a marathon.

Evaluating Operational Definitions

 What are the properties of an interval scale?

An interval scale measures the magnitude

of the dependent variable using equal intervals
between values with no absolute zero point.
Example: degrees Celsius or Fahrenheit and
Sarnoff and Zimbardo’s (1961) 0-100 scale.

Evaluating Operational Definitions

 What are the properties of a ratio scale?

A ratio scale measures the magnitude of the

dependent variable using equal intervals
between values and an absolute zero.
This scale allows us to state that 2 meters are
twice as long as 1 meter.
Example: distance in meters or time in seconds.

Evaluating Operational Definitions

 What does reliability mean?

Reliability refers to the consistency of

experimental operational definitions and
measured operational definitions.

Evaluating Operational Definitions

 Explain interrater reliability.

Interrater reliability is the degree to which

observers agree in their measurement
of the behavior.
Example: the degree to which three observers
agree when scoring the same personal essays
for optimism.

Evaluating Operational Definitions

 Explain test-retest reliability.

Test-retest reliability means the degree to

which a person's scores are consistent across
two or more administrations of a measurement
procedure.

Example: highly correlated scores on the

Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised
when it is administered twice, 2 weeks apart.

Evaluating Operational Definitions

 Explain interitem reliability.

Interitem reliability measures the degree to

which different parts of an instrument
(questionnaire or test) that are designed to
measure the same variable achieve consistent
results.

Evaluating Operational Definitions

 What does validity mean?

Validity means the operational definition

accurately manipulates the independent
variable or measures the dependent variable.

Evaluating Operational Definitions

 What is face validity?

Face validity is the degree to which the validity

of a manipulation or measurement technique is
self-evident. This is the least stringent form of
validity.
For example, using a ruler to measure pupil size.

Evaluating Operational Definitions

 What is content validity?

Content validity means how accurately a

measurement procedure samples the content
of the dependent variable.
Example: an exam over chapters 1-4 that only
contains questions about chapter 2 has poor
content validity.

Evaluating Operational Definitions

 What is predictive validity?

Predictive validity means how accurately a

measurement procedure predicts future
performance.
Example: the College Entrance Exam has
predictive validity if these scores are significantly
correlated with college GPA.

Evaluating Operational Definitions

 What is construct validity?

Construct validity is how accurately an

operational definition represents a construct.

Evaluating Operational Definitions

 Explain internal validity.

Internal validity is the degree to which changes

in the dependent variable across treatment
conditions were due to the independent variable.
Internal validity establishes a cause-and-effect
relationship between the independent and
dependent variables.

Evaluating Operational Definitions

 Explain the problem of confounding.

Confounding occurs when an extraneous

variable systematically changes across the
experimental conditions.
Example: a study comparing the effects of
meditation and prayer on blood pressure would
be confounded if one group exercised more.

Evaluating Operational Definitions

 Explain history threat.

History threat occurs when an event outside

the experiment threatens internal validity by
changing the dependent variable.

Evaluating Operational Definitions

 Explain maturation threat.

Maturation threat is produced when physical

or psychological changes in the subject threaten
internal validity by changing the DV.

Evaluating Operational Definitions

 Explain testing threat.

Testing threat occurs when prior exposure to a

measurement procedure affects performance on
this measure during the experiment.

Evaluating Operational Definitions

 Explain instrumentation threat.

Instrumentation threat is when changes in

the measurement instrument or measuring
procedure threatens internal validity.

Evaluating Operational Definitions

 Explain statistical regression threat.

Statistical regression threat occurs when

subjects are assigned to conditions on the basis
of extreme scores, the measurement procedure
is not completely reliable, and subjects are
retested using the same procedure to measure
change on the dependent variable.

Evaluating Operational Definitions

 Explain selection threat.

Selection threat occurs when individual

differences are not balanced across treatment
conditions by the assignment procedure.

Evaluating Operational Definitions

 Explain subject mortality threat.

Subject mortality threat occurs when subjects

drop out of experimental conditions at different
rates.

Evaluating Operational Definitions

 Explain selection interactions.

Selection interactions occur when a selection

threat combines with at least one other threat
(history, maturation, statistical regression,
subject mortality, or testing).

Evaluating Operational Definitions

 What is the purpose of the Method section of an
APA report?

The Method section of an APA research report

describes the Participants, Apparatus or
Materials, and Procedure of the experiment.
This section provides the reader with sufficient
detail (who, what, when, and how) to exactly
replicate your study.

Planning the Method Section

 When is an Apparatus section needed?

An Apparatus section of an APA research

report is appropriate when the equipment used in
a study was unique or specialized, or when we
need to explain the capabilities of more common
equipment so that the reader can better evaluate
or replicate the experiment.

Planning the Method Section

Activity:
Written below are examples of variables that an
experimenter may explore. Select at least two, and label
which is the IV and DV.
Resiliency Impostor Voting behavior Fear
syndrome

Attachment Helping Stress Story-telling

style behavior

Test scores Embarrassment Parenting style Self-efficacy

Extraversion Emotional Appetite Attention span

intelligence

Marital Status Attraction Light Color of

highlighters
 Assignment
Group work:
1.Prepare for your topic that you will explore for
the rest of the term. Draft your title.
2.Identify your IV and DV
3.Write your hypothesis
4.Define your variables operationally
5.Write the objectives of the study.
Note: Meetings should be recorded and will be
submitted at the end of the semester.