Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Hypothesis Testing
VARIABLES
Definition: Variables are properties or
characteristics of people or things that vary
in quality or magnitude from person to
person or object to object (Miller &
Nicholson, 1976)
Demographic characteristics
Personality traits
Communication styles or competencies
Constructs
Definitions
Variable: any entity that can take on a variety of
different values (Wrench et al, 2008, p. 104)
gender
self-esteem
managerial style
stuttering severity
attributes, values, and levels are the variations in a
variable
Attribute: political party:
Value: Democrat, Republican, Independent, etc.
Attribute: Self-esteem
Level: High, Medium, Low
Independent variable
the variable that is manipulated either by
the researcher or by nature or
circumstance
independent variables are also called
stimulus input or predictor variables
analogous to the cause in a cause-effect
relationship
operationalization of the
independent variable
Operationalization:
translating an abstract
concept into a tangible,
observable form in an
experiment
Operationalizations can
include:
variations in stimulus
conditions (public schools
versus home schooling)
variations in levels or
degrees (mild vs. moderate
vs. strong fear appeals)
variations based on
standardized scales or
diagnostic instruments
(low vs. high self esteem
scores)
variations in intact or
self-selected groups
(smokers vs. non-smokers)
dependent variable
a variable that is observed or measured,
and that is influenced or changed by the
independent variable
dependent variables are also known as
response or output or criterion
variables
analogous to the effect in a cause-effect
relationship
confounding variable
also known as extraneous variables or
intervening variables
confounding variables muddy the waters
alternate causal factors or contributory factors
which unintentionally influence the results of
an experiment, but arent the subject of the
study
interchangeability of independent
and dependent variables
The same concept or construct could serve as the
independent variable in one investigation, and the
dependent in another.
example: source credibility
as an independent variable; RQ: Does source credibility
(low versus high) have a significant effect on attitude
change?
As a dependent variable; RQ: Does the amount of
evidence contained in a speech affect listeners
perceptions of the sources credibility?
Relationships (correlations)
Positive correlation
Negative correlation
No or neutral correlation