
In an experiment, the factor (also called an independent variable) is an explanatory variable manipulated by the experimenter. Each factor has two or more levels, i.e., different values of the factor. Combinations of factor levels are called treatments.
What is a treatment variable in research?
The difference between explanatory and response variables is simple: An explanatory variable is the expected cause, and it explains the results. ... In randomization, you randomly assign the treatment (or independent variable) in your study to a sufficiently large number of subjects, ...
What is an explanatory variable?
May 03, 2022 · An explanatory variable measures a treatment applied to a subject. The response variable measures the effect the explanatory variable has on the response variable. The explanatory variable is also...
Can there be more than one explanatory variable in a study?
Sep 09, 2020 · Two of the most important types of variables to understand in statistics are explanatory variables and response variables. Explanatory Variable: Sometimes referred to as an independent variable or a predictor variable, this variable explains the variation in the response variable. Response Variable: Sometimes referred to as a dependent variable or an outcome …
What is the explanatory variable in the fertility treatment experiment?
May 06, 2019 · The distinction between explanatory and response variables is similar to another classification. Sometimes we refer to variables as being independent or dependent. The value of a dependent variable relies upon that of an independent variable. Thus a response variable corresponds to a dependent variable while an explanatory variable corresponds ...

Is the treatment same as explanatory variable?
What is the treatment in an experiment?
What is a treatment variable?
What are the explanatory variables in a treatment called?
What is treatment research?
What is the difference between treatment and control group?
What does treatment mean in medical terms?
What are treatment levels?
What is the explanatory variable in a study?
What is the difference between treatment and experimental unit?
Is treatment a response variable?
Are treatments the same as levels?
What’s the difference between method and methodology?
Methodology refers to the overarching strategy and rationale of your research project . It involves studying the methods used in your field and...
What’s the difference between quantitative and qualitative methods?
Quantitative research deals with numbers and statistics, while qualitative research deals with words and meanings. Quantitative methods allow yo...
What is sampling?
A sample is a subset of individuals from a larger population . Sampling means selecting the group that you will actually collect data from in...
What’s the difference between reliability and validity?
Reliability and validity are both about how well a method measures something: Reliability refers to the consistency of a measure (whether the r...
What is the difference between internal and external validity?
I nternal validity is the degree of confidence that the causal relationship you are testing is not influenced by other factors or variables . Ext...
What is experimental design?
Experimental design means planning a set of procedures to investigate a relationship between variables . To design a controlled experiment, you ne...
What are independent and dependent variables?
You can think of independent and dependent variables in terms of cause and effect: an independent variable is the variable you think is the ca...
What is the difference between quantitative and categorical variables?
Quantitative variables are any variables where the data represent amounts (e.g. height, weight, or age). Categorical variables are any variables...
What is the difference between discrete and continuous variables?
Discrete and continuous variables are two types of quantitative variables : Discrete variables represent counts (e.g. the number of objects in a...
How are explanatory variables and independent variables similar?
In research contexts, independent variables supposedly aren’t affected by or dependent on any other variable— they’re manipulated or altered only by researchers.
How many explanatory variables are there in a study?
In some studies, you’ll have only one explanatory variable and one response variable, but in more complicated research, you may predict one or more response variable (s) using several explanatory variables in a model.
What are explanatory and response variables?
Published on April 19, 2021 by Pritha Bhandari. In research, you often investigate causal relationships between variables using experiments or observations. For example, you might test whether caffeine improves speed by providing participants with different doses of caffeine and then comparing their reaction ...
What is the difference between an explanatory variable and a response variable?
An explanatory variable is what you manipulate or observe changes in ( e.g., caffeine dose), while a response variable is what changes as a result (e.g., reaction times). The words “explanatory variable” and “response variable” are often interchangeable with other terms used in research. Cause (what changes)
When do you expect changes in the response variable?
You expect changes in the response variable to happen only after changes in an explanatory variable. There’s a causal relationship between the variables that may be indirect or direct. In an indirect relationship, an explanatory variable may act on a response variable through a mediator.
Can an explanatory variable act on a response variable?
In an indirect relationship, an explanatory variable may act on a response variable through a mediator. If you’re dealing with a purely correlational relationship, there are no explanatory and response variables. Even if changes in one variable are associated with changes in another, both might be caused by a confounding variable.
When you have only one explanatory variable and one response variable, you’ll collect paired data?
This means every response variable measurement is linked to an explanatory variable value for each unit or participant.
What is the difference between explanatory and response variables?
The difference between explanatory and response variables is simple: An explanatory variable is the expected cause, and it explains the results. A response variable is the expected effect, and it responds to other variables.
What is the independent variable in an experiment?
For example, in an experiment about the effect of nutrients on crop growth: The independent variable is the amount of nutrients added to the crop field.
What is methodology in research?
Methodology refers to the overarching strategy and rationale of your research project. It involves studying the methods used in your field and the theories or principles behind them, in order to develop an approach that matches your objectives.
What is a method in science?
Methods are the specific tools and procedures you use to collect and analyze data (for example, experiments, surveys, and statistical tests ). In shorter scientific papers, where the aim is to report the findings of a specific study, you might simply describe what you did in a methods section.
What is the difference between reliability and validity?
Reliability and validity are both about how well a method measures something: Reliability refers to the consistency of a measure ( whether the results can be reproduced under the same conditions). Validity refers to the accuracy of a measure (whether the results really do represent what they are supposed to measure).
How to tell if a variable is independent or dependent?
You can think of independent and dependent variables in terms of cause and effect: an independent variable is the variable you think is the cause, while a dependent variable is the effect. In an experiment, you manipulate the independent variable and measure the outcome in the dependent variable.
What are quantitative variables?
Quantitative variables are any variables where the data represent amounts (e.g. height, weight, or age). Categorical variables are any variables where the data represent groups. This includes rankings (e.g. finishing places in a race), classifications (e.g. brands of cereal), and binary outcomes (e.g. coin flips).
What are the two types of variables in statistics?
Two of the most important types of variables to understand in statistics are explanatory variables and response variables. Explanatory Variable : Sometimes referred to as an independent variable or a predictor variable, this variable explains the variation in the response variable. Response Variable: Sometimes referred to as a dependent variable ...
What is the variable that changes as a result of the fertilizer being applied to it?
Explanatory Variable: Type of fertilizer. This is the variable we change so that we can observe the effect it has on plant growth. Response Variable: Plant growth. This is the variable that changes as a result of the fertilizer being applied to it.
Why is explanatory variable not used in statistics?
This terminology is typically not used in statistics because the explanatory variable is not truly independent. Instead the variable only takes on the values that are observed. We may have no control over the values of an explanatory variable. Cite this Article.
What is the difference between explanatory and response variables?
The value of a dependent variable relies upon that of an independent variable. Thus a response variable corresponds to a dependent variable while an explanatory variable corresponds to an independent variable. This terminology is typically not used in statistics because the explanatory variable is not truly independent. Instead the variable only takes on the values that are observed. We may have no control over the values of an explanatory variable.
Is a response variable present in a study?
A response variable may not be present in a study. The naming of this type of variable depends upon the questions that are being asked by a researcher. The conducting of an observational study would be an example of an instance when there is not a response variable. An experiment will have a response variable.
What is an example of an instance when there is no response variable?
The conducting of an observational study would be an example of an instance when there is not a response variable. An experiment will have a response variable. The careful design of an experiment tries to establish that the changes in a response variable are directly caused by changes in the explanatory variables.
What is the response variable in an experiment?
The careful design of an experiment tries to establish that the changes in a response variable are directly caused by changes in the explanatory variables.
Is a response variable dependent or explanatory?
Thus a response variable corresponds to a dependent variable while an explanatory variable corresponds to an independent variable. This terminology is typically not used in statistics because the explanatory variable is not truly independent.
When to use scatterplot?
When we are working with paired quantitative data, it is appropriate to use a scatterplot. The purpose of this kind of graph is to demonstrate relationships and trends within the paired data. We do not need to have both an explanatory and response variable. If this is the case, then either variable can plotted along either axis. However, in the event that there is a response and explanatory variable, then the explanatory variable is always plotted along the x or horizontal axis of a Cartesian coordinate system. The response variable is then plotted along the y axis.
What is the explanatory variable in a research study?
In an experimental study, the explanatory variable is the variable that is manipulated by the researcher.
What is the response variable for public speaking?
This experiment has one explanatory variable: the lesson received. The response variable is anxiety level.
What are the two fertility treatments for pandas?
A team of veterinarians wants to compare the effectiveness of two fertility treatments for pandas in captivity. The two treatments are in-vitro fertilization and male fertility medications. This experiment has one explanatory variable: type of fertility treatment. The response variable is a measure of fertility rate.

Explanatory vs Response Variables
Explanatory vs Independent Variables
- Explanatory variables and independent variablesare very similar, but there are subtle differences between them. In research contexts, independent variables supposedly aren’t affected by or dependent on any other variable—they’re manipulated or altered only by researchers. For example, if you run a controlled experimentwhere you can control exactly how much caffeine each partici…
Visualizing Explanatory and Response Variables
- The easiest way to visualize the relationship between an explanatory variable and a response variable is with a graph. On graphs, the explanatory variable is conventionally placed on the x-axis, while the response variable is placed on the y-axis. 1. If you have quantitative variables, use a scatterplot or a line graph. 2. If your response variable is categorical, use a scatterplot or a line g…