Bobby has trouble sitting still in class, and a behavior consultant works with a teacher to implement a clinical program in which she praises Bobby when staying in his seat. Bobby's sitting behavior increases, and the teacher concludes to the behavior consultant that her praise was responsible for the change. The teacher does not realize that Bobby has started taking medication that causes fatigue. In this example, the medication is serving as:
A) the dependent variable
B) the independent variable
C) an extraneous variable
D) the response class

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The medication is an extraneous variable because it is a variable that was not intentionally manipulated in the clinical program, but it may have influenced Bobby's behavior. The independent variable in this case was the praise from the behavior consultant, and the dependent variable was Bobby's sitting behavior. The response class refers to a group of behaviors that produce the same effect or outcome, so it is not applicable in this scenario.

Bobby Has Trouble Sitting Still in Class, and a Behavior