What does "Dependent Variable" mean?
Definition of Dependent Variable in the context of A/B testing (online controlled experiments).
What is a Dependent Variable?
A dependent variable is any variable that could be influenced by the intervention we are testing. In an A/B test this would be any outcomes of interest such as conversion rate, average revenue per user, average order value and others. A dependent variable is usually modeled as a random variable (a parameter behaving as if produced by a stochastic process).
Contrast this to an independent variable such as a user's age, sex, location, and so on, which is fixed in time and therefore cannot be influenced by anything a conversion rate optimization expert attempts.
Like this glossary entry? For an in-depth and comprehensive reading on A/B testing stats, check out the book "Statistical Methods in Online A/B Testing" by the author of this glossary, Georgi Georgiev.
Related A/B Testing terms
Independent Variable
Statistical Methods in Online A/B Testing
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