Let's say you want to assess the effect of subliminal suggestions on ratings of attractiveness. You ask 20 students to listen to subliminal tapes and then have them rate the attractiveness of 20 peers. You discover that all the peers were rated as highly attractive, with a mean of 8 out of a possible 10. Why is the above experimental design inadequate?
A) It lacks demand characteristics.
B) It lacks an independent variable.
C) It lacks a dependent variable.
D) It lacks a control group.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The experimental design lacks a control group, which is necessary to compare the effects of the subliminal suggestions to a baseline or to individuals who did not receive the subliminal suggestions. Without a control group, it's impossible to determine if the high attractiveness ratings were due to the subliminal suggestions or other factors.

Let's Say You Want to Assess the Effect of Subliminal