Glossary / Lexicon

Attention only control group refers to a control group whose members meet regularly with a clinician but receive no "active" treatment.

In psychology research, an attention-only control group is a type of control group used to isolate the effects of attention on the outcomes of an experiment. In this type of control group, participants receive the same amount of attention from the experimenter as the experimental group, but do not receive any of the experimental treatment or manipulation.

The purpose of using an attention-only control group is to determine whether any observed effects in the experimental group are due to the experimental manipulation itself, or simply due to the increased attention given to participants. By comparing the results of the experimental group to the attention-only control group, researchers can better determine whether the treatment or manipulation had a significant effect on the outcome variables.

For example, let's say a researcher is interested in studying the effects of a new memory training program on participants' memory performance. They randomly assign participants to either the experimental group, which receives the memory training program, or the attention-only control group, which receives the same amount of attention from the experimenter but does not receive the memory training program. Both groups are then tested on their memory performance using the same task. If the experimental group shows significant improvement on the memory task compared to the control group, the researcher can conclude that the memory training program was effective in improving memory performance.

Similar concepts to the attention-only control group include the placebo control group and the no-treatment control group. In a placebo control group, participants receive a treatment that is similar in appearance to the experimental treatment but does not contain the active ingredient or component hypothesized to have the effect. In a no-treatment control group, participants do not receive any treatment or manipulation and are simply observed for changes in the outcome variable. These types of control groups can also help isolate the effects of attention in experimental research.

Overall, the use of attention-only control groups is an important methodological consideration in experimental research, as it helps to establish the causal relationship between an experimental manipulation and the outcome variable.