field experiment

a study that is conducted outside the laboratory in a “real-world” setting. Participants are exposed to one of two or more levels of an independent variable and observed for their reactions; they are likely to be unaware of the research. Such research often is conducted without random selection or random assignment of participants to conditions and without deliberate experimental manipulation of the independent variable by the researcher. See field research; quasi-experimental research.

Browse dictionary by letter

a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z

Psychology term of the day

November 22nd 2024

shrink

n. slang for a psychologist, psychiatrist, or other mental health professional who conducts psychotherapy. It is short for headshrinker, an allusion to the practice of headshrinking.