Extraneous and Confounding Variables

A small scale study that is conducted before the larger study, to iron out problems with the design

• Pilot study

• Sample study

• Experimental realism

• Experimenter reality

When the participants and the person conducting the experiment are unaware of the aim / hypothesis

• Single-blind

• Double-blind

• Standardised procedure

• Extraneous variable

When a variable interferes with the results of one condition but not the other...

• Variable

• Extraneous variable

• Confounding variable

• Experimenter realism

If the researchers make the task sufficiently engaging, the participant will forgetting they are being studied and act more naturally...

• Counter-balancing

• Experimental realism

• Experimenter realism

• Counter-design

A pilot study might identify the following problems...

• The design of the experiment

• The script is unclear

• How many participants are needed

• The aim of the study being wrong

When a variable influences both groups when it is not intended too...

• Confounding variable

• Extraneous variable

• Experimental variable

• variable

Study 1: participants were required to recall nonsense syllables on 12 occasions, spread over 3 days OR 12 days. Recall was higher when it was spread over 12 days. What is the operationalised IV of the study?

• The number of words recalled

• The amount of information remembered over 3 or 12 days

• The number of days recall took place over (3 or 12)

• The number of days

Study 2: Post office workers had to learn to type postcodes using massed or distributed practice. Distributed practice was found to be superior. What is the DV of the study?

• The amount of postcodes remembered

• The type of practice used (massed or distributed)

• The number of correctly typed postcodes

• The strategy used to learn to type the postcodes

Study 2: Post office workers had to learn to type postcodes using massed or distributed practice. Distributed practice was found to be superior. What is the direction hypothesis of the study?

• Participants who used distributed practice were able to accurately type a higher number of postcodes than those who used massed practice.

• There will be a difference in the number of postcodes accurately typed in massed practice and distributed practice.

• Participants will type a higher number of postcodes correctly if taught the distribution practice method than the massed practice method.

"There will be no difference in the number of hours slept at night between participants who consume 30mg of caffeine and participants who consume 0mg of caffeine and, if there is, it is due to chance". What type of hypothesis is this?

• A non-directional hypothesis for experimental research

• A null hypothesis for experimental research

• A non-directional hypothesis for correlational research

• A null hypothesis for correlational research