Here's a study on the moods of a sample of bus drivers. Bus driving is a profession in which people must be courteous to others throughout the day. What impact might such job-mandated courtesy have on bus drivers? The article reports that,
... on days when the smiles were forced, the subjects’ moods deteriorated and they tended to withdraw from work. ...But on days when the subjects tried to display smiles through deeper efforts — by actually cultivating pleasant thoughts and memories — their overall moods improved and their productivity increased.
a. What are the independent and dependent variables in this study?
b. Can you graph the outcomes described? (Note--there are two DV's, so choose only one for your sample graph.
c. From the journalist's description, it's hard to tell if the "forced smile" vs. "deeper smile" variable is measured or manipulated. Why does this matter: What kinds of conclusions could you draw if this variable was manipulated? What kinds of conclusions can you draw if this variable was only measured?
Photo: Tina Fineberg, Associated Press
Later on, the authors state the following:
Women were affected more than men.
d. Redraw your graph, adding this gender variable. In the graph that you drew, do you notice any main effects? Interactions?
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