What are the dependent and independent variables in the sentences? I don't understand them.

Question

1. Students who have higher intelligence report they like their teachers the most.
2. Methodists who are less likely to engage in alcohol abuse are less likely to remain married.
3. Couples without children report they are less satisfied in their marriages than couples with children.
4. Young men are more likely to enjoy recreation if they have a great deal of money.
5. The less salt a group of people have in their diet the more likely they are to develop hypertension.
6. The more cigarettes a group of people smoke, the more likely they are to develop cancers.
7. The less sugar one has in one's diet, the less likely that person is to develop diabetes.
8. Grade point average is related to student satisfaction. The higher the student's
grade point average, the greater the satisfaction with education is reported.
9. Student success is influenced by the quality of the student-teacher relationship.
Students who report they like their instructors are more likely to perform well in courses.
10. The more hours per week a student studies in groups, the better they are likely to do on class.
11. Student success is related to the number of extra curricular activities the student is involved in. Those students who are more active are more likely to do well in class.
12. The less students study, the more likely they are to fail the course.

Answer 1

Independent = can be a sentence on its own if punctuated correctly (in bold below)

Dependent = cannot be a sentence on its own, no matter how you punctuate it (underlined below)

I'll get you started with the first two:

1. Students who have higher intelligence report they like their teachers the most.

2. Methodists who are less likely to engage in alcohol abuse are less likely to remain married.

In the 2nd one, you could also argue that "to remain married" is dependent since it's an infinitive phrase.

Answer 2

You try the rest and let us know what you decide.

http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/clauses.htm