Question

A psychologist uses the double-blind technique in her research design. She is trying to avoid:

a. Observer bias
b. Sampling bias
c. Placebo effect
d. Experimenter expectancy effect

Answer 1

The psychologist uses the double-blind technique to avoid observer bias and the experimenter expectancy effect, ensuring that neither participants nor researchers know who is receiving the treatment.

Step-by-step explanation:

A psychologist uses the double-blind technique in her research design to avoid several types of bias and the placebo effect. The primary bias that this technique is intended to prevent is both observer bias and the experimenter expectancy effect. Specifically, by ensuring that neither the participants nor the researchers know who is receiving the actual treatment and who is receiving a placebo, a double-blind study controls for biases that can affect the outcome of the study.

The placebo effect is also mitigated since participants do not know if they are receiving the real treatment or a placebo, which can influence their response simply based on their expectations.