observer's paradox
noun1
The situation in which a phenomenon being observed for study is unintentionally influenced by the presence of the observer.
- These conditions have served to diminish what is known as the observer’s paradox[…], so that the data this exploration draws on can be regarded as naturally occurring communication, i.e. as data “that would have occurred regardless of the investigator’s interventions or research aspirations”[…].[2022, Sabine Fiedler, Cyril Robert Brosch, “Methods and data” (chapter 5), in Esperanto – Lingua Franca and Language Community, John Benjamins Publishing Company, →DOI, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OL, page 22: