Statistics and Probability Dictionary
Select a term from the dropdown text box. The online statistics
glossary will display a definition, plus links to other
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Observational Study
Like
experiments,
observational studies attempt to understand cause-and-effect
relationships. However, unlike experiments, the researcher
is not able to control (1) how subjects are
assigned to groups and/or (2) which treatments each group
receives.
For example, a
sample survey,
does not apply a treatment to
survey respondents. The researcher only observes survey
responses. Therefore, a sample survey is an example of an
observational study.