I need help identify variables in a hypothesis, as well as indicating the independant variable.?

Question

Children are more likely than adults to spend time watching cartoons on television.


I really cant figure out what the varibles are in the hypothesis, i think that age is the independant variable, but i dont know.

any help is greatly appreciated!!!

Answer 1

The independent variable affects the dependent variable, that's why the DV is so called dependent.

However, this statement you have is not strictly experimental, meaning, there is nothing directly stating which variable affects which (no cause-and-effect direction). To illustrate: maybe the choice of station affects who will watch it. Maybe the age of the watcher affects the choice of station. Which causes which? Thus, your confusion.

I can state it in these terms,
IV : choice of station
DV: age of person

or

IV: age of person
DV: choice of station

either one may be correct, depending on the actual method the study is employing. For example, if you have a room of adults and kids, play a cartoon, and see that the children are more interested in the cartoon than the adults are, then the first set of variables apply. If you give a TV to a child and a TV to an adult and see which station they would turn to and watch longer, then the second set of variables apply.

Good luck.

Answer 2

Cartoon watching is the dependent variable in this hypothesis because it is the phenomenon being influenced. Age is the independent variable because it influences whether the cartoons are watched. Think of the dependent variable as the "outcome" that we expect and that "depends" on something else. Think of the independent variable as the thing that affects that outcome and can vary.

Hope this was helpful! Good Luck and ask again if you need more help :)

Answer 3

In any hypothesis, the problem we want to analyse is dependent variable.
Here spending more time watching cartoons on television is d.v.
The variables which influence the problem are independent variables.
Here age is influenceing the problem of watching more television so it is i.v.