Republic of The Philippines

ILOILO STATE COLLEGE OF FISHERIES

COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
GRADUATE PROGRAM
Tiwi, Barotac Nuevo Iloilo

ALFREDO J. PARRENO, JR. DR. JOHNNY D. DOLOR

PhD ILE-MATH PROFESSOR
Topic: EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH

 What is Experimental Research?

Experimental research is a study that strictly adheres to a scientific research design. It

includes a hypothesis, a variable that can be manipulated by the researcher, and
variables that can be measured, calculated and compared. Most importantly,
experimental research is completed in a controlled environment. The researcher
collects data and results will either support or reject the hypothesis. This method of
research is referred to a hypothesis testing or a deductive research method

 The Uniqueness of Experimental Research

The unique strength of experimental research is its internal validity (causality) due to its

ability to link cause and effect through treatment manipulation, while controlling for the
spurious effect of extraneous variable. Experimental research can be conducted in
laboratory or field settings.

The major feature that distinguishes experimental research from other types of

research is that the researcher manipulates the independent variable.  There are a
number of experimental group designs in experimental research. Some of these qualify
as experimental research, others do not.

 In true experimental research, the researcher not only manipulates the

independent variable, he or she also randomly assigned individuals to the
various treatment categories (i.e., control and treatment).
 In quasi experimental research, the researcher does not randomly assign
subjects to treatment and control groups. In other words, the treatment is not
distributed among participants randomly. In some cases, a researcher may
randomly assigns one whole group to treatment and one whole group to control.
In this case, quasi-experimental research involves using intact groups in an
experiment, rather than assigning individuals at random to research conditions.
(some researchers define this latter situation differently. For our course, we will
allow this definition).
 In causal comparative (ex post facto) research, the groups are already formed.
It does not meet the standards of an experiment because the independent
variable in not manipulated.
 Republic of The Philippines
ILOILO STATE COLLEGE OF FISHERIES
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
GRADUATE PROGRAM
Tiwi, Barotac Nuevo Iloilo

ALFREDO J. PARRENO, JR. DR. JOHNNY D. DOLOR

PhD ILE-MATH PROFESSOR

 Essential Characteristics of Experimental Research

Experimenters manipulate certain stimuli, treatments or environmental conditions and

observe how the condition or behavior of the subject is affected or changed. Such
manipulations are deliberate and systematic. The researchers must be aware of other
factors that could influence the outcome and remove or
control them in such a way that it will establish a logical association
between manipulated factors and observed factors. Experimental research provides a
method of hypothesis testing. Hypothesis is the heart of experimental research. After
the
experimenter defines a problem he has to propose a tentative
answer to the problem or hypothesis. Further, he has to test the hypothesis and confirm
or disconfirm it.

Although, the experimental method has greatest utility in the laboratory, it has been
effectively applied non-laboratory settings such as the classroom. The immediate
purpose of
experimentation is to predict events in the experimental setting. The ultimate purpose is
to generalize the variable relationships so that they may be applied outside the
laboratory to a wider population of interest.

Characteristics of Experimental Method:

There are four essential characteristics of experimental

research: (i) Cool, (ii) Manipulation (iii) Observation and (iv)
Replication.

Control: Variables that are not of direct interest to the researcher,

called extraneous variables, need to be controlled. Control refers to
removing or minimizing the influence of such variables by several
methods such as: randomization or random assignment of subjects
to groups; matching subjects on extraneous variable(s) and then
assigning subjects randomly to groups; making groups that are as
homogenous as possible on extraneous variable(s); application of
 Republic of The Philippines
ILOILO STATE COLLEGE OF FISHERIES
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
GRADUATE PROGRAM
Tiwi, Barotac Nuevo Iloilo

ALFREDO J. PARRENO, JR. DR. JOHNNY D. DOLOR

PhD ILE-MATH PROFESSOR
statistical technique of analysis of covariance (ANCOVA); balancing
means and standard deviations of the groups.

Manipulation: Manipulation refers to a deliberate operation of the conditions by the

researcher. In this process, a pre-determined set
of conditions, called independent variable or experimental variable.
It is also called treatment variable. Such variables are imposed on
the subjects of experiment. In specific terms manipulation refers to
deliberate operation of independent variable on the subjects of
experimental group by the researcher to observe its effect. Sex,
socio-economic status, intelligence, method of teaching, training or
qualification of teacher, and classroom environment are the major
independent variables in educational research. If the researcher, for
example, wants to study the effect of ‘X’ method of teaching on the
achievement of students in mathematics, the independent variable here is the method
of teaching. The researcher in this experiment needs to manipulate ‘X’ i.e. the method
of teaching. In other words, the researcher has to teach the experimental groups using
‘X’method and see its effect on achievement.

Observation: In experimental research, the experimenter

observes the effect of the manipulation of the independent variable on dependent
variable. The dependent variable, for example, may
be performance or achievement in a task.

Replication: Replication is a matter of conducting a number of sub-experiments,

instead of one experiment only, within the
framework of the same experimental design. The researcher may
make a multiple comparison of a number of cases of the control
group and a number of cases of the experimental group. In some
experimental situations, a number of control and experimental groups, each consisting
of equivalent subjects, are combined within a single experiment.

 Group Design In Experimental Research

 Republic of The Philippines
ILOILO STATE COLLEGE OF FISHERIES
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
GRADUATE PROGRAM
Tiwi, Barotac Nuevo Iloilo

ALFREDO J. PARRENO, JR. DR. JOHNNY D. DOLOR

PhD ILE-MATH PROFESSOR
The true experimental research design relies on statistical analysis to approve or
disprove a hypothesis. It is the most accurate type of experimental design and may be
carried out with or without a pretest on at least 2 randomly assigned dependent
subjects.

The true experimental research design must contain a control group, a variable that can
be manipulated by the researcher, and the distribution must be random. The
classifications of true experimental design include:

 The posttest-only Control Group Design: In this design, subjects are randomly
selected and assigned to the 2 groups (control and experimental), and only the
experimental group is treated. After close observation, both groups are post-
tested, and a conclusion is drawn from the difference between these groups.
 The pretest-posttest Control Group Design: For this control group design,
subjects are randomly assigned to the 2 groups, both are presented, but only the
experimental group is treated. After close observation, both groups are post-
tested to measure the degree of change in each group.
 Solomon four-group Design: This is the combination of the pretest-only and
the pretest-posttest control groups. In this case, the randomly selected subjects
are placed into 4 groups.

The first two of these groups are tested using the posttest-only method, while the other
two are tested using the pretest-posttest method.

 Control of Threats to Internal Validity

Internal validity is the extent to which you can be confident that a cause-and-effect
relationship established in a study cannot be explained by other factors.

In other words, can you reasonably draw a causal link between your treatment and the
response in an experiment?

Internal validity makes the conclusions of a causal relationship credible and trustworthy.
Without high internal validity, an experiment cannot demonstrate a causal link between
two variables.

There are three necessary conditions for internal validity. All three conditions must
occur to experimentally establish causality between an independent variable A (your
treatment variable) and dependent variable B (your response variable).

1. Your treatment and response variables change together.

 Republic of The Philippines
ILOILO STATE COLLEGE OF FISHERIES
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
GRADUATE PROGRAM
Tiwi, Barotac Nuevo Iloilo

ALFREDO J. PARRENO, JR. DR. JOHNNY D. DOLOR

PhD ILE-MATH PROFESSOR
2. Your treatment precedes changes in your response variables
3. No confounding or extraneous factors can explain the results of your study.

Counter Threats in Single-group Studies

Altering the experimental design can counter several threats to internal validity in single-
group studies.

 Adding a comparable control group counters all threats to single-group studies.

If comparable control and treatment groups each face the same threats, the
outcomes of the study won’t be affected by them.
 A large sample size counters testing, because results would be more sensitive
to any variability in the outcomes.
 Using filler-tasks or questionnaires to hide the purpose of study also counters
testing threats.

Counter Threats in Multi-group Studies

Altering the experimental design can counter several threats to internal validity in multi-
group studies.

 Random assignment of participants to groups counters selection bias and

regression to the mean by making groups comparable at the start of the study.
 Blinding participants to the aim of the study counters the effects of social
interaction.

 Control of Experimental Treatments

In a scientific study, a control group is used to establish a cause-and-effect

relationship by isolating the effect of an independent variable.

Researchers change the independent variable in the treatment group and keep it
constant in the control group. Then they compare the results of these groups.

Using a control group means that any change in the dependent variable can be
attributed to the independent variable.
 Republic of The Philippines
ILOILO STATE COLLEGE OF FISHERIES
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
GRADUATE PROGRAM
Tiwi, Barotac Nuevo Iloilo

ALFREDO J. PARRENO, JR. DR. JOHNNY D. DOLOR

PhD ILE-MATH PROFESSOR
Control groups in experiments
Control groups are essential to experimental design. When researchers are interested
in the impact of a new treatment, they randomly divide their study participants into at
least two groups:

 The treatment group (also called the experimental group) receives the

treatment whose effect the researcher is interested in.
 The control group receives either no treatment, a standard treatment whose
effect is already known, or a placebo (a fake treatment).

The treatment is any independent variable manipulated by the experimenters, and its
exact form depends on the type of research being performed. In a medical trial, it might
be a new drug or therapy. In public policy studies, it could be a new social policy that
some receive and not others.

In a well-designed experiment, all variables apart from the treatment should be kept
constant between the two groups. This means researchers can correctly measure the
entire effect of the treatment without interference from confounding variables.

Example of a control group: You are interested in whether college students perform
better in school if they are paid for their performance. To test this, you divide several
students into control and treatment groups.

 You pay the students in the treatment group for achieving high grades.
 Students in the control group do not receive any money.

By comparing the average change in their grades over the year, you can find out
whether monetary incentives improve school performance.
Studies can also include more than one treatment or control group. Researchers might
want to examine the impact of multiple treatments at once, or compare a new treatment
to several alternatives currently available.

Example of multiple control groups: You have developed a new pill to treat high blood
pressure. To test its effectiveness, you run an experiment with a treatment and two
control groups.

 The treatment group gets the new pill.

 Control group 1 gets an identical-looking sugar pill (a placebo)
 Control group 2 gets a pill already approved to treat high blood pressure
 Republic of The Philippines
ILOILO STATE COLLEGE OF FISHERIES
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
GRADUATE PROGRAM
Tiwi, Barotac Nuevo Iloilo

ALFREDO J. PARRENO, JR. DR. JOHNNY D. DOLOR

PhD ILE-MATH PROFESSOR
Since the only variable that differs between the three groups is the type of pill, any
differences in average blood pressure between the three groups can be credited to the
type of pill they received.

 The difference between the treatment group and control group 1 demonstrates
the effectiveness of the pill as compared to no treatment.
 The difference between the treatment group and control group 2 shows whether
the new pill improves on treatments already available on the market.

References:

https://www.scribd.com › document › The Uniqueness of Experimental Research |

Experiment - Scribd

https://onlinenotebank.wordpress.com › 2019/11/28/ Experimental Research-Meaning –

Characteristics/

McLeod, S. A. (2017, January 14). Experimental design. Simply Psychology.

https://www.simplypsychology.org/experimental-designs.html