Is a double-blind study, the same thing as a study with a control group?

Hi everyone





Is a double-blind study, the same thing as a study with a control group? Do scientific studies need to be double-blind to be valid?





I am thinking of a particular case, but it's sort of long, so I hoped a general question would suffice. Thank you for your answers =)|||No. A single blind experiment is where the control and experimental groups are not aware of what group they are in. A double blind is where both the experimenter and the participants are unaware of which group participants are in.|||You know, I think a double blind study is where neither the people administering the treatment or the recipients know if they are getting the real deal or the placebo. A study with a control group is just one where the real treatment isn't given to some. Now, don't take my word for it. If need be use google and look it up. That's just what I seem to remember and I'm too lazy to do the research myself. Double blind procedures certainly help with validity.


Alex, what are you saying "No" to me for? I basically said the same thing you are saying. You said a double blind is where both the experimenter(that's the people administering the treatment) and the participants(that is recipients of the treatment) are unaware which group they are in(they don't know if they are getting the real deal or the placebo). It makes me think you just looked your answer up online and have no idea what I'm talking about. But, to expand on what I said earlier, yes double blinds do help with validity. Say there are two groups. One group gets an anti-depressant, and the other gets a placebo. If the person administering the treatment, the experimenter, knows which recipient got the real medicine and believes that the anti-depressant will work they may record the symptoms of those that got the anti-depressant as less depressive than those than those that did not even if there is no difference. If they do not know which got the anti-depressant and which got the placebo then their beliefs about the affectiveness of the anti-depressant will not affect their results of experiment.