In research, referring to variables that interfere with the relationship between the variables being studied, making it difficult to determine true cause and effect. Confounding factors create alternative explanations for observed results.
From Latin 'confundere' meaning 'to pour together, mix up, confuse,' composed of 'con-' (together) and 'fundere' (to pour). The research meaning developed from the general sense of mixing things up so they can't be distinguished.
Confounding variables are like having multiple suspects at a crime scene - you can't tell who actually committed the crime because everyone's fingerprints are mixed together! Good research design is like careful detective work: isolating suspects (variables) so you can question each one separately and find the real culprit.
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