In a recent study, researchers had half of the watch a TV commercial that depicted very attractive (and skinny) women whereas the other half watched a TV commercial depicting normal women. In order to measure college women's attitudes toward food, the participants were than asked to fill out a questionnaire about their eating attitudes. The researchers also left out a bowl of M & M's and allowed the participants to eat some while completing the survey. The researchers than counted how many M & M's each participant ate. In this experiment, the type of TV commercial watched in the ________ and the number of M & M's eaten is the ________.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The type of TV commercial watched is the independent variable because it is the variable that is manipulated by the researchers to see its effect on participants' behavior. The number of M & M's eaten is the dependent variable because it is the outcome that is being measured to see if there is an effect from the manipulation of the independent variable.

In a Recent Study, Researchers Had Half of the Watch