A psychologist argues that the use of social media late at night impairs next-day cognitive performance specifically by reducing sleep quality, rather than through any direct effect of the media content itself.
Which experimental finding, if true, would most strongly support the psychologist's argument?
- A
Some users follow specific topics on social media.
- B
Many people report using social media throughout the day.
- C
Social media platforms can deliver many types of content.
- Dcheck_circle
Participants who used social media late at night and showed reduced sleep quality performed worse on next-day tests; those who used social media earlier in the day, with similar content but undisturbed sleep, performed similarly to non-users.
Explanation
A holds content constant and varies timing/sleep, isolating sleep-quality reduction as the mechanism. B, C, and D are tangential.