Question

Two groups of graduate students were given rats and were told to teach them how to run mazes. Group 1 was told that they had "very smart" rats that should learn quickly. Group 2 was told that they had "very stupid" rats that should learn slowly. In actuality, neither group was any different and the rats were randomly assigned. In spite of that, when the experiment concluded, Group 1 rats had learned the maze much more quickly. How can that be explained?

Answer 1

Answer:

Experimenter effect  

Explanation:

Experimenter effect: The experimenter effect is also known as the observer effect. It refers to the process of influence or impact of the experimenter or the researcher conducting an experiment on the performance of the participants involved in that experiment and on result interpretation.

The researcher can minimize the experimenter effect by recording the actual statement of the participants and not what the researcher thinks they mean, statistical analysis, and by avoiding data interpretation during the study.

Even though rats were randomly assigned, when the experiment concluded, Group 1 rats had learned the maze much more quickly because of the experimenter effect.