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A clinical psychologist is tracking patients and records their age (in years), their current occupation (e.g., 'Teacher'), and whether they are receiving psychotherapy (e.g., 'Yes' or 'No'). Identify which of these variables are categorical variables, and briefly apply the definition to justify your choice.
Question: A clinical psychologist is tracking patients and records their age (in years), their current occupation (e.g., 'Teacher'), and whether they are receiving psychotherapy (e.g., 'Yes' or 'No'). Identify which of these variables are categorical variables, and briefly apply the definition to justify your choice.
Sample answer: The categorical variables are occupation and whether they are receiving psychotherapy. These are categorical variables because they represent qualities or characteristics (employment type and treatment status) and are assessed using descriptive category labels rather than numerical values.
Key points:
- Identifies occupation as a categorical variable
- Identifies psychotherapy status as a categorical variable
- Explains that they represent characteristics or qualities using descriptive category labels rather than numbers
Rubric: Identifies occupation and psychotherapy status as categorical variables (excluding age) and justifies the choice by stating they represent qualities/characteristics assessed via descriptive labels rather than numbers.
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Research Methods in Psychology - 4th American Edition @ KPU
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Mutually Exclusive Categories
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Dummy Variable
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A clinical psychologist is tracking patients and records their age (in years), their current occupation (e.g., 'Teacher'), and whether they are receiving psychotherapy (e.g., 'Yes' or 'No'). Identify which of these variables are categorical variables, and briefly apply the definition to justify your choice.