Usually when you are looking for a relationship between two things you are trying to find out what makes the dependent variable change the way it does. Many people have trouble remembering which is the independent variable and which is the dependent variable.
An easy way to remember is to insert the names of the two variables you are using in this sentence in they way that makes the most sense. Then you can figure out which is the independent variable and which is the dependent variable:. Independent variable causes a change in Dependent Variable and it isn't possible that Dependent Variable could cause a change in Independent Variable. We see that "Time Spent Studying" must be the independent variable and "Test Score" must be the dependent variable because the sentence doesn't make sense the other way around.
Fun Graphing Exercise! What are Independent and Dependent Variables? In types of research where the exact relationship between variables is less certain, you might use different terms for independent and dependent variables. Sometimes, the variable you think is the cause might not be fully independent — it might be influenced by other variables. In this case, one of these terms is more appropriate:. Scribbr Plagiarism Checker. Researchers often use charts or graphs to visualize the results of their studies.
For instance, how might a graph look from our example study on the impact of a new medication on blood pressure? Frequently asked questions What are independent and dependent variables?
You can think of independent and dependent variables in terms of cause and effect: an independent variable is the variable you think is the cause , while a dependent variable is the effect. 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:. Defining your variables, and deciding how you will manipulate and measure them, is an important part of experimental design.
Determining cause and effect is one of the most important parts of scientific research. You want to find out how blood sugar levels are affected by drinking diet soda and regular soda, so you conduct an experiment. The value of a dependent variable depends on an independent variable, so a variable cannot be both independent and dependent at the same time.
It must be either the cause or the effect, not both! Yes, but including more than one of either type requires multiple research questions. For example, if you are interested in the effect of a diet on health, you can use multiple measures of health: blood sugar, blood pressure, weight, pulse, and many more. Each of these is its own dependent variable with its own research question.
You could also choose to look at the effect of exercise levels as well as diet, or even the additional effect of the two combined. Each of these is a separate independent variable. To ensure the internal validity of an experiment , you should only change one independent variable at a time.
Have a language expert improve your writing. Check your paper for plagiarism in 10 minutes. Do the check. For example, allocating participants to either drug or placebo conditions independent variable in order to measure any changes in the intensity of their anxiety dependent variable.
In a well-designed experimental study , the independent variable is the only important difference between the experimental e. The dependent variable is the variable being tested and measured in an experiment, and is 'dependent' on the independent variable.
An example of a dependent variable is depression symptoms, which depends on the independent variable type of therapy. In an experiment, the researcher is looking for the possible effect on the dependent variable that might be caused by changing the independent variable.
For example, we might change the type of information e. In this particular example the type of information is the independent variable because it changes and the amount of information remembered is the dependent variable because this is being measured.
It is very important in psychological research to clearly define what you mean by both your independent and dependent variables.
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