1.6 Experimental Design Notes MAT 1260
1.6 Experimental Design Notes MAT 1260
Section Objectives
1. Describe the characteristics of an experiment
2. Explain the completely randomized design
3. Explain the matched-pairs design
4. Explain the steps in designing an experiment
Characteristics of an Experiment
The experimental unit (subject) is the person or object upon which the treatment is
applied.
The treatment is the factor applied to the subject to determine changes to explanatory
variables.
The control group serves as the baseline treatment that can be used to compare it to
other treatments.
• Do students that use online homework perform better on exams? The control
group might be a group of students that use textbook homework.
A placebo is a way to define a control group by using a "fake" treatment (like a sugar
tablet) that appears like the experimental medication.
A matched-pairs design is an experiment where the subjects are paired up, so they are
related in some way (same person before and after treatment, twins, spouses, same
geographical location,…). There are only two levels of treatment, randomly assigned.