Defining Variables 

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Research
Research is a systematic inquiry that investigates hypothesis, suggests new interpretations of
data or texts, and poses new questions for future research to explore. ž Research consists of:

1. Asking a question that nobody has asked before

2. Doing the necessary work to find the answer 

3. Communicating the knowledge, you have acquired to a larger audience.

 i t e m p r b b v l e m d a t a
h y p o f t h d e a s i s e x p
e r i m e a n t e c r o n c l u
s i o n a p c p l g c i t i o n
i d c o n d i t i o n n a t i f
e d a f t e r a o t h a o b r o
u h o b s e r v a r t i h o l n
i d e l l o r t n o c n o c b e

A _____________ is any ___________, _____________or ________that can be ________ or ___________.

Introduction
Each person/thing we collect data on is called an observation (in our research
work these are usually people/subjects).

• Observation (participants) possess a variety of characteristics.

• If a characteristic of an observation (participant) is the same for every member

of the group i.e., it does not vary, it is called a constant 

• If a characteristic of an observation (participant) differs for group members it is

called a variable.
What is Variable?
MEANING OF VARIABLES 

•A variable is a concept or abstract idea that can be described in measurable terms. In research,
this term refers to the measurable characteristics, qualities, traits, or attributes of a particular
individual, object, or situation being studied.

• Anything that can vary can be considered a variable. For instance, age can be considered a
variable because age can take different values for different people or for the same person at
different times. Similarly, Income can be considered a variable because a person's Income can
be assigned a value.
MEANING OF VARIABLES 

• Variables are properties or characteristics of some event, object, or person that

can take on different values or amounts. 

• A variable is not only something that we measure, but also something that we
can manipulate and something we can control for.
EXAMPLES OF VARIABLES
 Types of Variables

Variable

 Independent Dependent Moderator Intervening Control Extraneous

Variable Variable Variable Variable Variable Variable
 1. Independent Variable
Types of
Variables 2. Dependent Variable

3. Moderator Variable

4. Intervening Variable

5. Control Variable

6. Extraneous Variable
 Dependent variable
Dependent variable is also known as ‘Responding variable’. 
The variable that depends on other factors that are measured. These variables are expected to change as a result
of an experimental manipulation of the independent variable or variables. It is the presumed effect.
 It depends on the values that result from the Independent variables. Simply, the Dependent variable is what
is affected by the Independent variables. 
 The Dependent variable(DV) is just like name sounds: it depends upon some factor that you, the researcher,
controls. 
For example:
1. How well you perform in a race depends on your Training. 
2. How much you earn depends upon the number of hours you work. 
 There can be one or more dependent variable in an experiment.
 Independent variable
Independent variable is also known as ‘Manipulated variable’. 
The variable that is stable and unaffected by the other variables you are trying to measure. It refers to the
condition of an experiment that is systematically manipulated by the investigator. It is the presumed cause.
 Simply, the Independent variable is the condition that you change in experiment. It is the variable you
control. 
 It is called independent because its value doesn’t affect by the other variable. 
 There can be only one Independent variable in an experiment & it produces one or more results known as
Dependent variable. 
For example:-
1. Ice-cream leads to Fever. 
2. IQ varies with Age.
In an experiment, the researcher is looking for the possible effect on the dependent variable that might be caused by
changing the independent variable.
RELATION BETWEEN DEPENDENT AND
INDEPENDENT VARIABLE
Controlled variable
Controlled variable is the factor that is kept constant (unchanged) all throughout the experiment in
order to test the relative relationship of the Interdependent and dependent variables.
 There are many controlled variables in an experiment. It strongly influences experimental results.
For example:-
Q. If we are testing to see how the amount of light received affects plant growth:
1. In plant growth experiment, water and fertilizer levels are constant.
 • Sometimes certain characteristics of the objects under

Controlled scrutiny are deliberately left unchanged. These are known as

constant or controlled variables.

variable
• The variables that are not measured in a particular study
must be held constant, neutralized/balanced, or eliminated,
so they will not have a biasing effect on the other variables.

• In the ice cube experiment, one constant or controllable

variable could be the size and shape of the cube. By keeping
the ice cubes' sizes and shapes the same, it's easier to
measure the differences between the cubes as they melt after
shifting their positions, as they all started out as the same
size.
Extraneous variable 
It is also called “Confounding variables”.
 Extraneous variable are factors in the research which may influence the Dependent variables, but
which are not controlled. 
 Extraneous variables are dangerous. They may damage a study’s validity.
 In other words, these are all variable, which are not the Independent variable, but could affect the
result of the experiment.
 They are things that influence our result and are a source of Error.
For instance, if we are testing the influence of temp. on plant growth, we want to make sure that soil
type and amount of water given are constant; otherwise, they are extraneous variables.
Extraneous variable 

• It happens sometimes that after completion of the study we wonder that the actual result is not
what we expected. In spite of taking all the possible measures the outcome is unexpected. It is
because of extraneous variables

• Variables that may affect research outcomes but have not been adequately considered in the
study are termed as extraneous variables. Extraneous variables exist in all studies and can
affect the measurement of study variables and the relationship among these variables.