When friends tell you, with certainty, that a particular treatment helped them quit smoking, that in itself does NOT mean the treatment is effective. After all, friends are more likely to tell you about successful treatments than about unsuccessful treatments. This problem is called a(n) __________.

A) report bias
B) dependent variable
C) confound
D) independent variable

Report bias occurs when individuals selectively report or share information that supports their beliefs or experiences, leading to an incomplete or biased picture of the effectiveness of a treatment. In this scenario, the friends may be more likely to share their positive experiences with the treatment and ignore or downplay any negative experiences, leading to a skewed perception of the treatment's effectiveness.