What is a confederate in psychology?

A confederate in psychology is an individual who is part of an experiment but is actually working with the researcher, unbeknownst to the other participants. The role of the confederate is to help manipulate or influence the behavior of the other participants in the study.

Confederates are often used in social psychology experiments to create specific social situations, manipulate the responses of participants, or to provide cues that influence behavior. They can act as a fake participant, a bystander, or even a collaborator with the researcher.

Confederates must be carefully trained to ensure that they follow the experimental protocol and do not reveal their true role to the other participants. The use of confederates raises ethical concerns around deception and informed consent, so researchers must carefully consider the potential risks and benefits of using confederates in their studies.