Variables
anything that varies from one entity to another
Situational variable
quality of the situation or environment
Response variable
participants’ responses or behaviors
Participant variables
Individual differences between participants
Correlation/relationship
association between variables
Positive linear relationship
increases in one variable corresponds with increases in another
positive correlation
Negative linear relationship
increases in one variable corresponds with increases in another
negative correlation
Curvilinear relationship
direction of the relationship changes at a certain point
Causal relationships
one variable causes changes in another
Unidirectional
A causes changes in B
Bidirectional
A causes change in B AND B causes changes in A
Independent variable
the variable causing the changes
Dependent variable
the variable being affected
Directionality problem
unsure which variable affects the other
Third-variable problem
confounding variables might account for the association
Confounding variable
variable that affects both independent and dependent variables
Manipulate
cause changes in
Random assignment
participants randomly assigned to a condition
