Experimental Design Flashcards
6 cards from real FAST practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 6 Experimental Design flashcards as text
What is the primary purpose of a control group in an experiment?
Answer: To provide a baseline for comparison against the treatment group
The control group serves as a reference point, allowing researchers to determine whether the treatment had an effect.
What is random assignment and why is it important?
Answer: Randomly placing participants in groups to equalize confounding variables
Random assignment distributes known and unknown confounding variables equally across groups, strengthening causal conclusions.
What is a confounding variable?
Answer: A variable that influences both the independent and dependent variables
Confounders create alternative explanations for results by simultaneously affecting the treatment and outcome.
What is the difference between internal and external validity?
Answer: Internal validity is confidence in causal conclusions; external validity is generalizability
Internal validity ensures the study accurately identifies causal relationships, while external validity indicates how well results apply to other settings.
What is a double-blind experiment?
Answer: Neither participants nor researchers know who receives treatment or placebo
Double-blinding prevents both participant and researcher expectations from influencing results, reducing bias.
Why is replication important in experimental research?
Answer: It confirms that findings are reliable and not due to chance or specific conditions
Replication verifies that results are robust and generalizable, not artifacts of specific conditions or sampling variability.