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Relationships Between Variables
Humans often behave in predictable ways. The challenge for social scientists is to uncover the patterns underlying that behavior. Social scientists do this by examining the relationships between variables. A communication variable is any observable, measurable, communication behavior, characteristic, or concept that can take on different values, intensities, or states. These variables are often studied in relationship to other communication variables or physiological, psychological, linguistic, relational, social, and cultural influences or consequences. This entry describes the kinds of relationships examined between those variables and the types of statistical tests used to analyze those relationships.
Types of Relationships
Relationships between variables can be described as null, covariant, or influential. The null predicts no relationship between variables. The variables function independently of each other. Covariant relationships exist when a ...
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- Observational Measurement: Face Features
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- Organizational Identification
- Outlier Analysis
- Parsimony
- Physiological Measurement
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- Physiological Measurement: Genital Blood Volume
- Physiological Measurement: Heart Rate
- Physiological Measurement: Pupillary Response
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- Range
- Raw Score
- Reaction Time
- Reliability of Measurement
- Reliability, Cronbach’s Alpha
- Reliability, Knuder-Richardson
- Reliability, Split-half
- Scales, Forced Choice
- Scales, Likert Statement
- Scales, Open-Ended
- Scales, Rank Order
- Scales, Semantic Differential
- Scales, True/False
- Scaling, Guttman
- Standard Score
- Time Series Notation
- True Score
- Validity, Concurrent
- Validity, Construct
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- Validity, Halo Effect
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- Z Transformation
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- Under-represented Group
- Content Analysis
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- Alternative News Media
- Analytic Induction
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- Case Study
- Close Reading
- Coding, Fixed
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- Computer-Assisted Qualitative Data Analysis Software (CAQDAS)
- Covert Observation
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- Population/Sample
- Power Curves
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- Heteroskedasticity
- Homogeneity of Variance
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- Intraclass Correlation
- Mean, Arithmetic
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- Median
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- Mortality in Sample
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- Relationships Between Variables
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- Sensitivity Analysis
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- Statistical Models
- Autoregressive, Integrative, Moving Average (ARIMA) Models
- Binomial Effect Size Display
- Cloze Procedure
- Cross Validation
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- Curvilinear Relationship
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- Meta-Analysis: Random Effects Analysis
- Meta-Analysis: Statistical Conversion to Common Metric
- Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA)
- Multivariate Statistics
- Odds Ratio
- Ordinary Least Squares
- Path Analysis
- Probit Analysis
- Quasi-F
- Sobel Test
- Structural Equation Modeling
- Time-Series Analysis
- Analysis of Variance Approaches
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- Areas of Inquiry
- Acculturation
- African American Communication and Culture
- Agenda Setting
- Applied Communication
- Argumentation Theory
- Asian/Pacific American Communication Studies
- Bad News, Communication of
- Basic Course in Communication
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- Communication and Aging Research
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- Conflict, Mediation, and Negotiation
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- Diaspora
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- Dime Dating
- Disability and Communication
- Distance Learning
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- Emergency Communication
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- English as a Second Language
- Environmental Communication
- Family Communication
- Feminist Communication Studies
- Film Studies
- Financial Communication
- Freedom of Expression
- Game Studies
- Gender and Communication
- GeoMedia
- GLBT Communication Studies
- GLBT Social Media
- Group Communication
- Health Communication
- Health Literacy
- Human-Computer Interaction
- Instructional Communication
- Intercultural Communication
- Intergenerational Communication
- Intergroup Communication
- International Communication
- International Film
- Interpersonal Communication
- Intrapersonal Communication
- Jealousy
- Journalism
- Language and Social Interaction
- Latino Communication
- Leadership
- Legal Communication
- Managerial Communication
- Mass Communication
- Massive Multiplayer Online Games
- Massive Open Online Courses
- Media and Technology Studies
- Media Diffusion
- Media Effects Research
- Media Literacy
- Message Production
- Multiplatform Journalism
- Native American or Indigenous Peoples Communication
- Nonverbal Communication
- Organizational Communication
- Parasocial Communication
- Passing
- Patient-Centered Communication
- Peace Studies
- Performance Studies
- Personal Relationship Studies
- Persuasion
- Philosophy of Communication
- Politeness
- Political Communication
- Political Debates
- Political Economy of Media
- Popular Communication
- Pornography and Research
- Propaganda
- Public Address
- Public Relations
- Reality Television
- Relational Dialectics Theory
- Religious Communication
- Rhetoric
- Rhetorical Genre
- Risk Communication
- Robotic Communication
- Science Communication
- Selective Exposure
- Service Learning
- Small Group Communication
- Social Cognition
- Social Network Systems
- Social Presence
- Social Relationships
- Spirituality and Communication
- Sports Communication
- Strategic Communication
- Structuration Theory
- Surrogacy
- Terrorism
- Training and Development in Organizations
- Video Games
- Visual Communication Studies
- Wartime Communication
- Structure of Research Community
- Areas of Inquiry
- Appendices
- Modern History of the Discipline of Communication
- Resource Guide
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