What are treatments in statistics?

Answer 1

Many studies will take a random sample from a population to determine the effects of something, perhaps a new medicine's ability to prevent an illness. In this example the sample would have two groups. One would be given the new medicine, which would be the treatment. The other would be given a placebo. After a set period of time, the researcher would observe which group had more illnesses. So the treatment is essentially what the researchers are testing. It could be a medical treatment, like in the example but it doesn't have to be. Other treatments might include an exercise program, a type of dog food or a new way to teach phonics.