Case Study

Explain how the researchers operationalized their independent and dependent variables in this study, and explain the methodological purpose of isolating participants in individual rooms and using a pre-recorded voice for the emergency instead of a live actor.

Case context: Consider the experimental design used by Darley and Latané in their simulated emergency experiment. In this study, university students were isolated in small rooms and communicated via intercom. They heard a pre-recorded voice of a student having a seizure. The researchers manipulated the perceived number of witnesses. The primary finding was a significant drop in the percentage of participants leaving the room to seek help (from 85% to 62% to 31%) as the perceived witness count increased.

Question: Explain how the researchers operationalized their independent and dependent variables in this study, and explain the methodological purpose of isolating participants in individual rooms and using a pre-recorded voice for the emergency instead of a live actor.

Sample answer: In this experiment, the independent variable was operationalized as the perceived number of witnesses on the intercom line, while the dependent variable of helping behavior was operationalized as the percentage of participants who left their isolated room to seek help. Isolating participants in separate rooms prevented them from seeing or communicating with each other, which controlled for peer influence and ensured that the decision to help was based solely on their belief about the number of witnesses. Using a pre-recorded voice standardized the emergency stimulus, ensuring that every participant heard the exact same seizure event.

Key points:

  • The independent variable was operationalized as the number of perceived witnesses on the intercom.
  • The dependent variable was operationalized as the percentage of participants leaving their room to seek help.
  • Isolating participants in separate rooms controlled for peer interaction and visual cues.
  • Using a pre-recorded voice standardized the emergency stimulus across all participants and conditions.

Rubric: The answer should explain the operationalization of the independent variable (the perceived witness count manipulated via intercom) and the dependent variable (percentage of participants leaving the room to seek help). It must also explain the control functions: isolation prevents participants from observing or communicating with others to coordinate responses, and the pre-recorded voice standardizes the emergency stimulus across all trials.

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Updated 2026-05-26

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Research Methods in Psychology - 4th American Edition @ KPU

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