Controlling variables Flashcards
What are participant variables?
Participant variables are those which occur where individual characteristics of participants affect their behaviour in an experiment. For example, age may be a confounding variable in an experiment about reaction of individuals to a light or noise stimulus as older people may have a slower reaction time than younger people.
What are situational variables?
Situational variables are those which might affect the behaviour of the participants in a an experiment but relate to the environment in which the experiment is taking place. For example, if you were testing whether athletes train better by themselves or with another athlete, then it would be unfair to take measurements on days when the weather was very different.
What are experimental variables?
Experimental variables occur when the experimenter treats some participants differently to others. The experimenters behaviour may be different which might then impact upon the DV - called experimenter bias. Experimenter bias can be quite unconscious and the experimenter might not realise that they are behaving differently.
