Does one factor influence a measure we are interested in by first influencing a third factor?
In our discussion of direct effects, we learned about cases where an independent variable directly affects a dependent variable with all else being equal – that is, where no other extraneous factors change or have an impact on the relationship.
However, “all else being equal” indicates an understanding that the real world is complex, and rarely is all else equal. For example, in our Buyer Experience Study, we found that each vendor added to an evaluation list directly adds 14.67 days to, but also adds 51.63 more days through indirect factors. That is, buyers also tend to add members to a buying group when they add a vendor, and each member increases the number of interactions they have with each vendor, therefore lengthening the amount of time spent in the purchase process.
As you have just seen, Indirect Effects are often stated after a conjunction, such as but, or however.
Mediation analysis is the method by which researchers identify these indirect effects. Indirect effects quantify the extent to which an independent variable influences a dependent variable through a mediator.
