Post by Nicole on Sept 22, 2017 20:10:44 GMT
This situation does not represent a placebo effect scenario. A placebo effect is when subjects respond positively, or show some change in their physical/mental condition as a result of believing they have taken a supplement (usually a drug) that causes this change. Simply believing that they have extra help when they really do not sometimes helps a subject's condition perhaps through emotional or mental stress relieving pathways that is not understood well.
The child who did well after her parents did not clean her clothes knew that they really didn't clean their clothes (assuming the socks and underwear were clearly still dirty). The other child knew that her clothes were clean and this may have caused her to have less confidence and play poorly.
The key feature of a placebo effect is that both groups think they are taking the medicine, or at least, both groups don't know if they have taken the medicine or not. Then, a difference, if any, is observed between the two groups to see if the subjects taking the medicine showed a significant difference in their condition over those who took the placebo.
Both children knew if their clothes were dirty or not, so they were not in a state of 'unknowing'.
To make this situation truly a placebo scenario, the children would somehow have to not know if their socks and underwear were dirty - one child with clean laundry, the other with dirty. Since the hypothesis here is that dirty laundry helps performance, a significant difference would have to be seen between the children - but both children can not know what type of laundry they have.
The child who did well after her parents did not clean her clothes knew that they really didn't clean their clothes (assuming the socks and underwear were clearly still dirty). The other child knew that her clothes were clean and this may have caused her to have less confidence and play poorly.
The key feature of a placebo effect is that both groups think they are taking the medicine, or at least, both groups don't know if they have taken the medicine or not. Then, a difference, if any, is observed between the two groups to see if the subjects taking the medicine showed a significant difference in their condition over those who took the placebo.
Both children knew if their clothes were dirty or not, so they were not in a state of 'unknowing'.
To make this situation truly a placebo scenario, the children would somehow have to not know if their socks and underwear were dirty - one child with clean laundry, the other with dirty. Since the hypothesis here is that dirty laundry helps performance, a significant difference would have to be seen between the children - but both children can not know what type of laundry they have.