Many students think the resistance of an object to changes in its horizontal motion is due to its weight (rather than its mass)
Misconception
Diagnostic Resources
The following worksheets may help to identify whether students hold this particular misconception.
For more information, see the University of York EPSE website.
The following two questions ask about the acceleration of an object when pulled by the same force in different locations. Pupils who can clearly distinguish mass and weight – and who recognise that mass is the property that gives objects their resistance to changes in motion – may appreciate that the acceleration will be the same each time, even though the weight is not.
EPSE Gravity Q14Resources to Address This
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The inertia balance or 'wig-wag' (11-16)
Source - Practical physics/ Force and motion/ Inertia and Newton's first law
This resource shows that resistance to motion depends on the mass of the body being accelerated, rather than on its weight.
View Resource -
The effects of force and mass on motion (11-16)
Source - Practical physics/ Force and motion/ Force, mass and acceleration
Students can quickly see that force and mass have opposite effects on acceleration.
View Resource
References
The following studies have documented this misconception:
- Brown, D. and Clement, J. () "Classroom Teaching Experiments in Mechanics" in R. Duit, F. Goldberg, & H. Niedderer (eds.), Research in physics learning - theoretical issues and empirical studies. San Diego State University, San Diego, CA.
380-397.
- Fischbein, E., Stavy, R. and Ma-Naim, H. () The Psychological Structure of Naïve Impetus Conceptions. International Journal of Science Education, 11 (1),
71-81.