Final answer:
The correct answer to the student's question is option B, 'Control: No intervention, Treatment: Experimental condition,' since the control group is the one not receiving the experimental treatment. This facilitates a clear comparison of the effects of the treatment on the experimental group.
Step-by-step explanation:
In the context of an experiment, a control group is the group that does not receive the experimental treatment and serves as a baseline for comparison. The treatment group, on the other hand, is the one that receives the experimental treatment.
Since the control is defined as receiving an inactive treatment and being managed identically to other groups, the correct answer is option B, which states that the Control is 'No intervention' and the Treatment is the 'Experimental condition.' This aligns with the concept of control groups being given a placebo or no treatment to accurately assess the effects of the treatment on the experimental group.
A well-designed experiment requires that the researcher only changes one variable (the independent variable) between the treatment and control groups while keeping all other variables constant to measure the impact on the dependent variable. For example, in Jonas Salk's polio vaccine study, the treatment group received the vaccine, and the control group received a saline solution placebo, allowing for a comparison of the effects of the vaccine on polio prevention.