dose–response relationship

a principle relating the potency of a drug to the efficacy of that drug in affecting a target symptom or organ system. Potency refers to the amount of a drug necessary to produce the desired effect; efficacy refers to the drug’s ability to act at a target receptor or organ to produce the desired effect. Dose–response curves may be graded, suggesting a continuous relationship between dose and effect, or quantal, wherein the desired effect is an either–or phenomenon, such as prevention of arrhythmias. There is considerable variability among individuals in response to a given dose of a particular drug.

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Psychology term of the day

January 31st 2025

group effect

a research finding specific to the group of individuals to which a participant belongs. A group effect could appear in an assigned subset, such as a treatment or intervention, or in a naturally occurring subset, such as age level or classroom. For example, a researcher might be interested in a group effect of a specific reading intervention, or in a group effect of book reading for students in the current decade who may be reading less than previous sets of students owing to more common use of the computer and television.