Dr. Spock is examining the effect of mood on liking for another person. When participants show up for his study, Dr. Spock flips a coin to determine whether participants will be in the happy condition or the sad condition. Dr. Spock is using _______ to determine the condition in which the participants will be placed.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Dr. Spock is using random assignment to determine which condition each participant will be placed in. This helps to control for any potential confounding variables that may influence the results, such as preexisting mood differences among the participants. By randomly assigning participants to either the happy or sad condition, Dr. Spock can be more confident that any observed differences in liking for another person are due to the manipulation of mood rather than other factors.

Dr Spock Is Examining the Effect of Mood on Liking