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"Why do we need to use control variables"

Could anyone help? what are control variables used for in an experiment and why are they needed (I know that they are variables that are kept the same)
Original post by masterstudier33
Could anyone help? what are control variables used for in an experiment and why are they needed (I know that they are variables that are kept the same)

control variables are variables that haven't been manipulated by the independent variable, we need them to make sure our results are only caused by 'experimental manipulation' (the independent variable in the experiment)
Original post by AizzyCola
control variables are variables that haven't been manipulated by the independent variable, we need them to make sure our results are only caused by 'experimental manipulation' (the independent variable in the experiment)


This was what came up when I googled it , but I still don’t understand this
Original post by masterstudier33
This was what came up when I googled it , but I still don’t understand this

okay think of it this way we use the control group to compare it to the experimental group
for example a study on the effect of caffeine on memory, group A has lots of coffee, group B has little coffee, and the control group has no coffee, they then all take a memory test or something. the control group is to see what people would normally get before (manipulation of variables) downing gallons of coffee

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