In a study about anxiousness, researchers have participants either read a story about a girl who is stressed about her final exams and other work and family commitments or a classic fairytale. before the study, they plan to have students self-report on their levels of anxiety, then re-test them after the study to see if the anxious story increased anxiousness levels. in this example, the students reported anxiousness after reading a story is the
dependent variable
independent variable
operational definition.