Assessment, Statistics, and Research

  Continuous variable . A variable having a wide range of numerical values, such as intelligence, achievement, and personality variables. Example : Scores on a Big Five test of personality are often reported as T-Scores for each of the five scales. Most people obtain scores in the range of 40 to 60 but it is possible to obtain lower and higher scores. The point of the example is that the scores are continuous and cover a wide range.  Researchers can group people based on their scores using groups labels like "high" and "low" perhaps by deciding that the median would be the score to separate high and low scores. Changing the continuous variable results in the formation of a grouping variable or categorical variable. Example 2 : Age is a continuous variable beginning at birth and continuing to death. Researchers can group people by age and create a grouping or categorical value. Learn More about variables in Creating Surveys on  AMAZON  or  GOOGLE Please check out m

  A Confounding variable  is a variable that produces unexpected changes in the dependent variable and therefore interferes with interpreting the capacity of an independent variable   to produce or explain changes in a dependent variable . Example : During a study of anxiety that includes measures of anxiety and stress, some participants watch a documentary about the treatment of anxiety and some do not. Documentary-watching may confound the results if watching the program influenced the scores on the measures of anxiety and stress. Similarly, some participants may be exposed to a source of stress in their environment but others are not, which could interfere with interpreting the results. Learn More about research methods and variables in Creating Surveys on  AMAZON  or  GOOGLE Please check out my website     www.suttong.com    and see my books on    AMAZON         or   GOOGLE STORE Also, consider connecting with me on     FACEBOOK     Geoff W. Sutton         TWITTER    @Geoff.

  Concurrent validity is a  method of test score validity based on the correlation of two sets of scores obtained at the same time. Example: A clinician creates a test of anger and hands the test to patients for completion. High scores represent high levels of anger. A different clinician rates the level of anger in the same patients based on interviews and rates the level on a scale of 1-10. Each patient has two sets of anger scores. A researcher can calculate the correlation between the test and the ratings. If the correlation is moderately high and not likely due to chance, then there is evidence for concurrent validity when using the new test under similar situations. Applied Statistics Concepts for Counselors on    AMAZON  or   GOOGLE Please check out my website     www.suttong.com    and see my books on    AMAZON        or   GOOGLE STORE Also, consider connecting with me on    FACEBOOK     Geoff W. Sutton          TWITTER    @Geoff.W.Sutton       You can read many published arti