What Is Independent Variable In Research?

by | Last updated on January 24, 2024

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The independent variable (IV) is the

characteristic of a psychology experiment that is manipulated or changed by researchers

, not by other variables in the experiment. For example, in an experiment looking at the effects of studying on test scores, studying would be the independent variable.

What is an independent variable in a research study?

The independent variable is

the variable the experimenter manipulates or changes

, and is assumed to have a direct effect on the dependent variable. … In an experiment, the researcher is looking for the possible effect on the dependent variable that might be caused by changing the independent variable.

What are independent and dependent variables in research?

In analytical health research there are generally two types of variables.

Independent variables are what we expect will influence dependent variables

. A Dependent variable is what happens as a result of the independent variable.

What is dependent and independent variable in Research example?

In a study to determine whether how long a student sleeps affects test scores,

the independent variable is the length of time spent sleeping

while the dependent variable is the test score. … The independent variable in your experiment would be the brand of paper towel.

What are the 3 independent variables?

In this sense, some common independent variables are

time, space, density, mass, fluid flow rate

, and previous values of some observed value of interest (e.g. human population size) to predict future values (the dependent variable).

Which is the dependent variable?

The dependent variable is

the variable that is being measured or tested in an experiment

.1 For example, in a study looking at how tutoring impacts test scores, the dependent variable would be the participants’ test scores, since that is what is being measured.

How do you identify independent and dependent variables?

An easy way to think of independent and dependent variables is, when you’re conducting an experiment,

the independent variable

is what you change, and the dependent variable is what changes because of that. You can also think of the independent variable as the cause and the dependent variable as the effect.

What is an example of an independent variable?

It is a variable that stands alone and isn’t changed by the other variables you are trying to measure. For example,

someone’s age might

be an independent variable. Other factors (such as what they eat, how much they go to school, how much television they watch) aren’t going to change a person’s age.

What is independent variable in Research example?

The independent variable (IV) is the characteristic of a psychology experiment that is manipulated or changed by researchers, not by other variables in the experiment. For example, in an experiment

looking at the effects of studying on test scores

, studying would be the independent variable.

How do you know if a variable is independent?

You can tell if two random variables are independent

by looking at their individual probabilities

. If those probabilities don’t change when the events meet, then those variables are independent. Another way of saying this is that if the two variables are correlated, then they are not independent.

What are the 3 types of variables?

These changing quantities are called variables. A variable is any factor, trait, or condition that can exist in differing amounts or types. An experiment usually has three kinds of variables:

independent, dependent, and controlled

.

Can time be a dependent variable?


Time is always the independent variable

. The other variable is the dependent variable (in our example: time is the independent variable and distance is the dependent variable).

What is dependent and independent variable in qualitative research?

The independent variable is the variable that is being manipulated, or the one that varies. It is sometimes called the ‘predictor’ or ‘treatment’ variable. The

dependent variable is the outcome (or response) variable

.

Is height an independent variable?

In this study, time is the independent variable and

height is the dependent variable

. Answer 5: When you make a graph of something, the independent variable is on the X-axis, the horizontal line, and the dependent variable is on the Y-axis, the vertical line.

Is a treatment an independent variable?

When a researcher gives an active medication to one group of people and a placebo, or inactive medication, to another group of people, the independent variable is

the medication treatment

. Each person’s response to the active medication or placebo is called the dependent variable.

How do you use independent variables?

In an

experiment

, you manipulate the independent variable and measure the outcome in the dependent variable. For example, in an experiment about the effect of nutrients on crop growth: The independent variable is the amount of nutrients added to the crop field.

Charlene Dyck
Author
Charlene Dyck
Charlene is a software developer and technology expert with a degree in computer science. She has worked for major tech companies and has a keen understanding of how computers and electronics work. Sarah is also an advocate for digital privacy and security.