Which is an advantage of Matched Pairs Design?

Which is an advantage of Matched Pairs Design?

• A. Requires more participants than independent groups.
• B. Has higher risk of order effects.
• C. Less possibility of demand characteristics.
• D. Not suitable for most tests.

Answer: (C)

Matched pairs design controls for individual differences by pairing participants on a relevant variable and then assigning each member of the pair to a different condition. This makes groups more similar and reduces unexplained variance, which often increases the chance of detecting an effect. Because each person experiences only one condition, there are fewer cross-condition cues for participants to pick up on, so demand characteristics—where participants try to guess the aims and respond accordingly—are less likely to influence results. The other statements aren’t true advantages here: it doesn’t inherently require more participants than an independent-groups design, order effects aren’t a major risk (they’re minimized since there’s no repeated testing of the same person), and the design is suitable for many types of tests.

Matched pairs design controls for individual differences by pairing participants on a relevant variable and then assigning each member of the pair to a different condition. This makes groups more similar and reduces unexplained variance, which often increases the chance of detecting an effect. Because each person experiences only one condition, there are fewer cross-condition cues for participants to pick up on, so demand characteristics—where participants try to guess the aims and respond accordingly—are less likely to influence results. The other statements aren’t true advantages here: it doesn’t inherently require more participants than an independent-groups design, order effects aren’t a major risk (they’re minimized since there’s no repeated testing of the same person), and the design is suitable for many types of tests.