Question

What does it mean for a sociologist to control for a variable?

Answer 1

There are different types of variables in a research study that have a certain connection with one another. They include the independent, dependent, intervening, moderator and extraneous variables. All of these variables are part of the study and interact with one another that helps the sociologist draw a conclusion during research.

There is another variable known as the control variable. control variable is the factor in research that the sociologist wishes to 'control', keep balanced, or eliminated. This is because this type of variable may have biased effect on the other variables that are being conducted in the study. The control variable is not of the interest nor concern of the sociologist and by eliminating or controlling these factors, the sociologist may conduct his research without worrying about certain influence from elements outside of the study.

Ex. When it comes to language learning in a classroom, a sociologist may wish to see how female students process language acquisition and by doing so, will keep the male students in the classroom out of the study. The male students are the control variable because they will have an altering affect upon the female students and other variables that are being researched in the classroom.