Question

Use the following information to answer. Many surgeons play music in the operating room. Does the type of music played have an effect on the surgeons' performance? The report "Death Metal in the Operating Room" (NPR, Dec. 24, 2009, www.npr.org) describes an experiment in which surgeons used a simulator to perform a surgery. Some of the surgeons listened to music with vocal elements while performing the surgery, and others listened to music that did not have vocal elements. The researchers concluded that the average time to complete the surgery was greater when music with vocal elements is played than when music without vocal elements is played. What are the experimental conditions for the experiment described? What is the response variable?

Short answer

The experimental conditions for the experiment are music with vocal elements and music without vocal elements. The response variable for this experiment is the average time taken by the surgeons to complete a surgery.

Step-by-step solution

Identify Experimental Conditions

The experimental conditions are the situations or environments under which the experiment is conducted. From our given exercise, it's evident the experimental conditions are the types of music the surgeons listen to while performing surgeries. Specifically, the two conditions are music with vocal elements and music without vocal elements.

Identify the Response Variable

The response variable or dependent variable is the factor that is being directly measured in the experiment. In this case, the response variable is the average time taken to complete the surgery. It is the outcome the researchers were measuring and tracking in relation to the different types of music.