Question

A group of college students believes that herbal tea has remarkable powers. To test this belief, they make weekly visits to a local nursing home, where they visit with the residents and serve them herbal tea. The nursing-home staff reports that after several months many of the residents are healthier and more cheerful. We should commend the students for their good deeds but doubt that herbal tea helped the residents. Identify the explanatory variable in this informal study.

Answer 1

The correct answer to this open question is the following.

You did not include the options for this question. However, we can comment on the following.

The explanatory variable in this informal study is Herbal tea.

Herbal tea is the variable because it is the element that makes the affirmations possible. Herbal tea is the factor that has improved the conditions and moods of people who live at the nursing home. Nurses have noted that people have a better semblance. And although this fact cannot be proved scientifically, it has provoked a positive reaction in patients.