Lecture 4A: True Experimental Studies Flashcards
What are the three major characteristics of true experimental design?
- Presence of a control group.
- Random assignment to groups.
- Determines cause and effect
List the five true experimental designs
- Pretest-posttest control group design.
- Two group pretest-posttest design.
- Multi-group pretest-posttest design.
- RCT with follow-up design.
- RCT with cross-over design
What does random assignment help control for in true experimental designs?
Confounding variables.
What is the purpose of a control group?
To compare against the treatment group.
What are the two types of control groups?
- No treatment control.
- Placebo control.
What is a two-group pretest-posttest design?
A design where the comparison group receives a second form of intervention to decide which is the better treatment.
What does a multigroup pretest-posttest design allow researchers to do?
Compare several treatment and control conditions.
What is a follow-up design in RCTs used for?
To evaluate long-lasting effects of a treatment.
What is a crossover design in RCTs?
When treatment and control groups switch after the first post-test. (Control group receives treatment later)
What is required in a crossover design for treatment switching?
A washout period.
What are some disadvantages of RCT?
- Time-consuming
- Expensive
- Affected by compliance and attrition in long-term studies
What is a disadvantage of RCTs related to sample size?
Need for a large sample size.
What ethical issues may arise in RCTs?
- No treatment/placebo treatment.
- Deception.
True or False: Randomization to groups ensures groups are likely similar.
True.
Fill in the blank: The presence of a _______ group allows for comparison in true experimental designs.
control
What conclusion can be drawn if individual-based training shows significantly more improvement than group-based training?
Individual-based training is more effective.
