A professor wants to determine whether her students perform better on mid-term examinations if they write their exam alone or in a group. To experimentally investigate this possibility, she randomly assigns half of her students to write their mid-term in the regular class setting (as a group) and randomly assigns the other half of her students to write their mid-term individually in private cubicles in the university's testing centre. All aspects of the exam are the same, except for the location. Which of the following is a potential confound for this study?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Memory cues linked to the regular classroom setting could potentially affect the performance of students who are writing the exam as a group, leading to a confounding variable. This variable could make it difficult to determine whether it is the group process or the classroom setting that positively or negatively influences exam performance.

A Professor Wants to Determine Whether Her Students Perform Better