A researcher investigated whether people with social anxiety disorder (SAD) are quicker to detect angry facial expressions than people who do not have SAD. A matched pairs design was used. This involved 12 people with SAD and 12 people without SAD. The researcher measured each participant's reaction time (in milliseconds) when identifying an angry face displayed on a computer screen among neutral distractors. It was found that people with SAD had significantly faster reaction times for detecting angry faces than those without SAD.
The researcher used a matched pairs design. Identify one relevant participant variable that could have been used to match participants in this study.
689 exam-style questions on AQA A Level Psychology Scientific processes. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.