n. 1. an error caused by improper statistical manipulation of experimental data or a logical flaw in experimental design that causes the changes that are not related to the experimental manipulation. The experimental finding is the consequence therefore, of the flawed design rather than a reflection of the true state of nature. 2. any manufactured object, particularly a product or item of historical significance.
ARTIFACT: “The artifact in the experiment was an unintended third variable in the experiment that made it look like the intervention was working.”