A wait list control group, also called a wait list comparison, is a group of participants included in an
outcome study that is assigned to a waiting list and receives intervention after the active treatment group. This
control group
In the design of experiments, hypotheses are applied to experimental units in a treatment group.
In comparative experiments, members of a control group receive a standard treatment, a placebo, or no treatment at all. There may be more than one tr ...
serves as an untreated comparison group during the study, but eventually goes on to receive treatment at a later date. Wait list control groups are often used when it would be unethical to deny participants access to treatment, provided the wait is still shorter than that for routine services.
[Elliott SA, Brown JS. (2002). What are we doing to waiting list controls? Behav Res Ther. 2002 Sep; 40(9): 1047–52.]
See also
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Experimental design
The design of experiments (DOE, DOX, or experimental design) is the design of any task that aims to describe and explain the variation of information under conditions that are hypothesized to reflect the variation. The term is generally associ ...
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Scientific control
A scientific control is an experiment or observation designed to minimize the effects of variables other than the independent variable (i.e. confounding variables). This increases the reliability of the results, often through a comparison betwe ...
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Treatment and control groups
In the design of experiments, hypotheses are applied to experimental units in a treatment group.
In comparative experiments, members of a control group receive a standard treatment, a placebo, or no treatment at all. There may be more than one tr ...
References
Design of experiments
Quantitative research
Experiments
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