Question

for each variable, determine whether it is best thought of as discrete or continuous.
variable
(a) the total amount of time that customers spend this week listening to telephone \hold\ music while calling 1-800-parcels
(b) the number of participants in a study who describe themselves as \perfectionistic\
(c) the time for a participant to identify the color of the letters when the word red is shown in green letters on a computer screen
(d) the body temperature measurement of a participant in a lie-detector test
discrete
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continuous
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Explanation:

• (a) The total amount of time that customers spend this week listening to telephone "hold" music while calling 1 - 800 - PARCELS: Time is a continuous variable. It can take on any value within a certain range (e.g., 1.5 minutes, 2.34 minutes).
• (b) The number of participants in a study who describe themselves as "perfectionistic": The number of participants is a discrete variable. You can't have a fraction of a participant. It takes on whole - number values (e.g., 5 participants, 10 participants).
• (c) The time for a participant to identify the color of the letters when the word red is shown in green letters on a computer screen: Time is a continuous variable. It can be measured with arbitrary precision (e.g., 0.34 seconds, 0.567 seconds).
• (d) The body temperature measurement of a participant in a lie - detector test: Temperature is a continuous variable. It can take on values within a range (e.g., 36.5°C, 37.2°C).

Answer:

(a) Continuous; (b) Discrete; (c) Continuous; (d) Continuous