Blind trust in unblinded observation in Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior

Melissa R. Kardish · Ulrich G. Mueller · Sabrina Amador‐Vargas · Emma I. Dietrich · Rong Ma · Brian Barrett +1 more

71 citations0/0 files storedFrontiers in Ecology and Evolution

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Meta-analysis and systematic reviews Animal Behavior and Reproduction Psychology Research and Bibliometrics

Abstract

We survey 492 recent studies in the fields of ecology, evolution and behavior (EEB) to evaluate potential for observer bias and the need for blind experimentation in each study. While 248 articles included experiments that could have been influenced by observer bias, only 13.3% of these articles indicated that experiments were blinded. The use of blind observation therefore was either grossly underreported in the surveyed articles, or many EEB studies were not blinded. We hope that a concerted effort of the field of EEB – including researchers, peer-reviewers, and journal editors – will help promote and institute routine, blind observation as an essential standard that should be practiced by all sciences.

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2005Why Most Published Research Findings Are False 2005Why Most Published Research Findings Are False 1984Essentials of Behavioral Research: Methods and Data Analysis 2011Negative results are disappearing from most disciplines and countries 2010Do Pressures to Publish Increase Scientists' Bias? An Empirical Support from US States Data 2012Observer bias in randomised clinical trials with binary outcomes: systematic review of trials with both blinded and non-blinded outcome assessors 2013Six red flags for suspect work 2012Perspectives – Minimizing Observer Bias in Behavioral Studies: A Review and Recommendations

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