A sociologist performs an experiment designed to investigate the effect of marriage counseling on divorce. She divides research participants into two similar groups of troubled couples, provides one group with counseling, and observes whether, over time, the two groups eventually divorce at different rates. What is the independent variable in this experiment?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The independent variable in this experiment is the marriage counseling, as it is what is being manipulated to observe its effect on the outcome (divorce rates). The other options are not independent variables, as they are either the outcome being observed (divorce), characteristics of the participants (troubled couples, overall divorce rate), or a method of conducting the experiment (dividing people into groups).

A Sociologist Performs an Experiment Designed to Investigate the Effect