3.4 - Experimental and Observational Studies

Now that Jaylen can weigh the different sampling strategies, he might want to consider the type of study he is conduction. As a note, for students interested in research designs, please consult STAT 503 for a much more in-depth discussion. However, for this example, we will simply distinguish between experimental and observational studies.

Now that we know how to collect data, the next step is to determine the type of study. The type of study will determine what type of relationship we can conclude.

There are predominantly two different types of studies:

Observational: A study where a researcher records or observes the observations or measurements without manipulating any variables. These studies show that there may be a relationship but not necessarily a cause and effect relationship.

Experimental: A study that involves some random assignment* of a treatment; researchers can draw cause and effect (or causal) conclusions. An experimental study may also be called a scientific study or an experiment.

Note! Random selection (a probability method of sampling) is not random assignment (as in an experiment). In an ideal world you would have a completely randomized experiment; one that incorporates random sampling and random assignment.

Example Quiz and Exam Score Studies

Let's say that there is an option to take quizzes throughout this class. In an observational study, we may find that better students tend to take the quizzes and do better on exams. Consequently, we might conclude that there may be a relationship between quizzes and exam scores.

In an experimental study, we would randomly assign quizzes to specific students to look for improvements. In other words, we would look to see whether taking quizzes causes higher exam scores.

Causation

It is very important to distinguish between observational and experimental studies since one has to be very skeptical about drawing cause and effect conclusions using observational studies. The use of random assignment of treatments (i.e. what distinguishes an experimental study from an observational study) allows one to employ cause and effect conclusions.

Ethics is an important aspect of experimental design to keep in mind. For example, the original relationship between smoking and lung cancer was based on an observational study and not an assignment of smoking behavior.

^[1]	Link
↥	Has Tooltip/Popover
	Toggleable Visibility