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Experimental control is the fundamental process by which researchers hold extraneous variables constant throughout a study. Because extraneous factors—such as individual participant differences or situational contexts—are likely to have an unintended effect on the dependent variable, they make it difficult to separate their impact from the true effect of the manipulated independent variable. By actively controlling these outside variables and preventing them from fluctuating across conditions, researchers can isolate the independent variable and confidently attribute any changes in the dependent variable to the experimental manipulation.

Experimental Control

A placebo is a simulated treatment that lacks any active ingredient or specific element intended to make it effective. Despite lacking active components, placebos are designed to mimic the appearance or experience of actual treatments, such as an identical-looking sugar pill in a drug trial or an unstructured conversation with a therapist in psychotherapy research.

Placebo

Random assignment is the primary method used to control extraneous variables across experimental conditions. It involves using a chance-based procedure to determine which participants are placed into which conditions. Strictly speaking, it requires that every participant has an equal probability of being placed in any condition and that each individual's assignment is completely independent of the others.

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