Practical Research - Types of Variables

variable

is any characteristic or attribute that can be measured

variable

is any characteristic that can take on different values

variable

basic unit of information to be studied or interpreted

variable

measurable factor that can be observed, controlled or manipulated

variable

attribute of an item of analysis in resesarch

study variable

other term for variable alone

independent

causes an effect on dependent variable

independent

can be altered during the study

independent

essential to effective experimental design because they allow researchers to identify cause-and-effect relationships

dependent

can change depending on the independent variable

has no effect on other variables

control

are constant and do not change during a study

has no effect on other variables

quantitative

is in the form of numerical values, allowing to perform mathematical computations with it

quantitative

beneficial for being objective and removes bias

discrete

any numerical value that can be realistically counted

continuous

takes an uncountable set of values or infinite set of values, usually collected through measurements

qualitative

non-numerical information that can be observed and recorded

binary

consists of only two parameters; e.g. male or female

nominal

can be labeled or categorized into multiple categories without using numbers; colors, names, nationalities, flavors

ordinal

can be categorized using number or scale; child, teenager, adult, senior

intervening

used to explain a cause or connection between other variables

mediator or mediating variable

moderating

changes the relationship between the dependent and independent variables by strengthening or weakening the intervening variable

affects strength of relationship

extraneous

can affect dependent variable, researcher did not account for

cofounding

researcher did not account for- show false correlations

composite

two or more variables combined

psychology

study and develop the methods and techniques used to measure human behavior and other attributes

economics

application of quantitative methods, models, and adequate algorhythms, the more complex phenomena

communication

helps to learn more about the patterns, trends, effects, and relationships communication phenomena

gender studies

applying the diversity continuum shows that quantitative techniques offer gender scholars a means to increase our

knowledge of differences, make scientific progress and simultaneously enable scholars to relate to existing knowledge

outside gender studies

marketing research

to ask questions to the target audience in an organized manner using

surveys, polls or questionnaires;

medical health

use clinical studies to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of new medications

workplace research

effectiveness of its current policies and

plan revisions to improve workflows