Question

You decide to do a 2 x 2 between subjects factorial design to examine how feedback on Facebook posts influence well-being. You are studying active (multiple posts a day) Facebook users.

There are two independent variables, each with two levels. IV A is Facebook "likes." For two days, participants will receive zero "likes" on all their Facebook posts or between 25-50 "likes" on all posts. IV B is Facebook comments. For two days, participants will receive no comments on all Facebook posts or between 5-10 comments on all Facebook posts. You will measure well-being before and after the study.

What can we learn from this 2 x 2 (Facebook "likes" x Facebook comments) factorial design, that we cannot learn from two separate experiments (one studying Facebook "likes" and the other studying Facebook comments)?

Answer 1

Factorial designs are much more affective than single facet designs as there is more than one independent variable that is being measured to see the impact on the dependent variable, which is the weel being

By measuring the factors such as comments as well as likes, instead of one, helps in making a more well informed and well rounded research.

Two separate variable studies can vitiate the results by confounding variables that are not in the control of the investigator, which will be more if there are two separate studies.