ABA Exam CoachLessons · D. Experimental Design
D.1 · Independent vs. dependent variables
Every experiment in behavior analysis comes down to two questions: what did we change, and what did we measure? Get those straight and you can read any study, or any scenario question, with confidence.
Key takeaway
The independent variable (IV) is the condition or intervention the analyst changes on purpose: introducing it, withdrawing it, or varying how much of it there is. The dependent variable (DV) is the behavior dimension that gets measured, like rate, duration, or latency, to see whether it changes. Something that changes but that nobody manipulated, like a new medication, is a confound, not an IV.
The independent variable (IV) is the condition or intervention the analyst changes on purpose: introducing it, withdrawing it, or varying how much of it there is. The dependent variable (DV) is the behavior dimension that gets measured, like rate, duration, or latency, to see whether it changes. Something that changes but that nobody manipulated, like a new medication, is a confound, not an IV.
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