Which design is associated with a high demand characteristics?

Which design is associated with a high demand characteristics?

• A. Independent Groups Design
• B. Repeated Measures Design
• C. Matched Pairs Design
• D. Single-subject Design

Answer: (B)

Demand characteristics are cues in a study that reveal its purpose to participants, prompting them to alter their behavior accordingly. In a repeated measures design, each participant encounters all conditions and can directly compare them, making the pattern of results easier to guess the researcher’s aim. This awareness can lead participants to adjust their responses to meet what they think the experimenter expects, increasing the influence of demand characteristics on the findings. By contrast, designs where each participant experiences only one condition (or where the focus is on a single case) provide fewer internal clues about the study’s purpose, so participants are less able to infer the aim and adjust their behavior.

Demand characteristics are cues in a study that reveal its purpose to participants, prompting them to alter their behavior accordingly. In a repeated measures design, each participant encounters all conditions and can directly compare them, making the pattern of results easier to guess the researcher’s aim. This awareness can lead participants to adjust their responses to meet what they think the experimenter expects, increasing the influence of demand characteristics on the findings. By contrast, designs where each participant experiences only one condition (or where the focus is on a single case) provide fewer internal clues about the study’s purpose, so participants are less able to infer the aim and adjust their behavior.