Experimental Design

Front

What is the purpose of randomly assigning subjects to treatment groups?

Back

To prevent confounding of results, ensure treatment groups are similar, and evenly spread out the subjects' characteristics among the treatment groups.

Front

What happens to the precision of your estimate as you obtain more data using proper sampling techniques?

Back

The more data you obtain, the more precise (less variable) your estimate is.

Front

What is the purpose of a control group in an experiment?

Back

To ensure that you have a baseline of comparison for the effectiveness of the treatment.

Front

What is confounding in experimental design?

Back

Confounding occurs when an outside factor influences both the treatment and the outcome, making it unclear what caused the effect.

Front

What is stratified sampling?

Back

Stratified sampling involves dividing the population into subgroups (strata) and randomly selecting samples from each stratum.

Front

What is the placebo effect?

Back

The placebo effect is when participants experience a perceived improvement in their condition due to believing they are receiving treatment, even if it is inactive.

Front

What is blinding in experimental design?

Back

Blinding is a technique where participants do not know whether they are receiving the treatment or a placebo to reduce bias.

Front

What is blocking in experimental design?

Back

Blocking is a method used to group similar subjects together to control for variables that could affect the outcome.

Front

What is the difference between a treatment group and a control group?

Back

The treatment group receives the experimental treatment, while the control group does not receive the treatment and serves as a baseline for comparison.

Front

What is random sampling?

Back

Random sampling is a technique where each member of the population has an equal chance of being selected for the sample.