A Psychologist Wanted to See If People Are More Prone

question 222

Essay

A psychologist wanted to see if people are more prone to seek the company of others when anxious than when calm. He randomly assigned half of his subjects to an anxiety group and then told them that, as part of the study, they would receive electric shocks. He did not frighten the other group of subjects. Finally, he recorded how many subjects in each group chose to be "tested" in a group setting and how many chose to be "tested" alone. What was the independent variable in this study?
a. tendency to desire the company of others
b. level of shock
c. level of anxiety
d. the anxious group

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Definitions:

ROPES

Acronym for the PR process, standing for research, objectives, programming, evaluation, and stewardship.

Participant Observation

A qualitative research method where the researcher immerses themselves in a community or group to observe behaviors and interactions from within.

Objective Observations

Objective observations refer to the unbiased and impartial recording or reporting of facts without influence from personal feelings or opinions.

Focus Group

Research method that involves a collective depth interview.