Inappropriate fiddling with statistical analyses to obtain a desirable p-value: tests to detect its presence in published literature
- PMID: 23056287
- PMCID: PMC3466248
- DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0046363
Inappropriate fiddling with statistical analyses to obtain a desirable p-value: tests to detect its presence in published literature
Abstract
Much has been written regarding p-values below certain thresholds (most notably 0.05) denoting statistical significance and the tendency of such p-values to be more readily publishable in peer-reviewed journals. Intuition suggests that there may be a tendency to manipulate statistical analyses to push a "near significant p-value" to a level that is considered significant. This article presents a method for detecting the presence of such manipulation (herein called "fiddling") in a distribution of p-values from independent studies. Simulations are used to illustrate the properties of the method. The results suggest that the method has low type I error and that power approaches acceptable levels as the number of p-values being studied approaches 1000.
Conflict of interest statement
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