Red pill or blue pill? If Neo in The Matrix takes the blue pill (the placebo), nothing happens. Image: W. Carter|Wikimedia Commons
The control group (sometimes called a comparison group ) is used in an experiment as a way to ensure that your experiment actually works. It’s a way to make sure that the treatment you are giving is causing the experimental results, and not something outside the experiment.
An experiment is split into two groups: the experimental group and the control group. The experimental group is given the experimental treatment and the control group is given either a standard treatment or nothing. For example, let’s say you wanted to know if Gatorade increased athletic performance. Your experimental group would be given the Gatorade and your control group would be given regular water.
The conditions must be exactly the same for all members in the experiment. The only difference between members must be the item or thing you are conducting the experiment to look at. Let’s say you wanted to know if a new fertilizer makes plants grow taller. You must ensure that the lighting, water supply, size of container and other important factors are held constant for every member in every group. The only thing that differs in this case is the type of fertilizer given to the plants.
No comments:
Post a Comment