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The Quest for Statistical Significance: Ignorance, Bias and Malpractice of Research Practitioners Joshua Abah The Quest for Statistical Significance: Ignorance, Bias and Malpractice of Research Practitioners Joshua Abah To cite this version: Joshua Abah. The Quest for Statistical Significance: Ignorance, Bias and Malpractice of Research Practitioners. International Journal of Research & Review (www.ijrrjournal.com), 2018, 5 (3), pp.112- 129. hal-01758493 HAL Id: hal-01758493 https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01758493 Submitted on 4 Apr 2018 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. Distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution - NonCommercial - ShareAlike| 4.0 International License International Journal of Research and Review www.gkpublication.in E-ISSN: 2349-9788; P-ISSN: 2454-2237 Review Article The Quest for Statistical Significance: Ignorance, Bias and Malpractice of Research Practitioners Joshua Abah Abah Department of Science Education University of Agriculture, Makurdi, Nigeria ABSTRACT There is a growing body of evidence on the prevalence of ignorance, biases and malpractice among researchers which questions the authenticity, validity and integrity of the knowledge been propagated in professional circles. The push for academic relevance and career advancement have driven some research practitioners into committing gross misconduct in the form of innocent ignorance, sloppiness, malicious intent and outright fraud. These, among other concerns around research data handling and reporting, form the basis for this in-depth review. This discourse also draws attention to the recent official statement on the correct use of the p-value and the need for professional intervention is ensuring that the outcomes of research are neither erroneous nor misleading. The expositions in this review express cogent implications for institutions, supervisors, mentors, and editors to promote high ethical standards and rigor in scientific investigations. Keywords: Research, Research misconduct, Bias, P-value, Statistical significance, ANCOVA Assumptions. INTRODUCTION new knowledge and/or the use of existing Research is an enterprise aimed at knowledge is a new and creative way so as finding solutions and answers to existing to generate new concepts, methodologies problems. Research can be seen as an and understandings. This could include objective, systematic, controlled and critical synthesis and analysis of previous research activity planned and directed towards the to the extent that it leads to new and creative discovery and development of dependable outcomes. From all indications, research can knowledge (Emaikwu, 2012). Literally “re- be described as an organized mechanism for search” means to “search again”. It connotes studying phenomenon and testing patient study and scientific investigation hypotheses. wherein the researcher takes another, more Research is an indispensable tool for careful look at data to discover all that can growth and development in all fields of be known about the subject of the study human endeavour. It has been a means of (Bodla, 2017). Broadly, research entails breaking forth into new frontiers in bringing together some content that is of medicine agriculture, banking, education, interests, some ideas that give meaning to food security, sociology, literature, arts and that content and some techniques or the sciences. Outcomes of diverse procedures by means of which those ideas researches across different disciplines and content can be studied (Deshmukh, constitute the fuel for the present scientific n.d.). According to O’Donnell (2012), and technological advancement the world is research can be defined as the creation of witnessing. The world today, being a International Journal of Research & Review (www.ijrrjournal.com) 112 Vol.5; Issue: 3; March 2018 Joshua Abah Abah. The Quest for Statistical Significance: Ignorance, Bias and Malpractice of Research Practitioners “global village” is driven by the quest to In light of the ripple effect of research in the know more, to venture into the unknown knowledge-generation circle, researchers and make human existence much better than and academic institutions place serious ever. As a result this significance of emphasis on research ethics. In the words of research, it is gradually becoming a sub- Norris (1997): discipline in itself, within every discipline. Research demands skepticism, This implies that within every field of study, commitment and detachment. To there is a prescribed way of doing research, understand the object or domain of broadly referred to as “Research inquiry takes an intense degree of methodology”. commitment and concentration. To Research methodology consists of learning remain open minded, alert to how to adopt several common approaches foreclosure and to sources of error when doing research, and how to conceive a needs some measure of detachment. research design (Jonker & Pennink, 2010). As with other forms of art, research Methodology is a systematic plan for requires detachment from oneself, a thinking and acting in the conduct of willingness to look at the self and research work. Emaikwu (2012) maintains the way it influences the quality of that scientific research methods must be data and reports; in particular verifiable, cumulative, ethical, theoretical research demands a capacity to and empirical. How well a research project accept and use criticism and to be is planned and how well the steps in the self-critical in a constructive manner plan are integrated can make the difference (p.173). between success or failure. In this respect, a plan consists of two general areas, namely Ethical conduct, in general refers to research concepts and context, and research actions that one takes pride in according to logistics (Congdon & Dunham, 1999), his or her conscience and that lives up to his which are coordinated within a given time or her responsibility as a member of society. frame, culminating in the writing of a Kim (2009) asserts that research ethics is a research report. The research report is the special social norm that researchers are output of the entire research process made obliged to abide by as criterion of judgment visible to a targeted audience and/or the for researchers not to operate against their public. For academics and researchers in professional integrity and to carry out universities, research centres, science socially responsible research activities. laboratories and other research generating Ethical standards are set by professional agencies, the production of quality and associations, educational institutions, relevant research reports is a measure of journal publishers and government growth and a determination of career and regulatory agencies. It is likely that these institutional relevance. Research reports are organizations vary considerably in the often published in professional journals, attention they invest and the procedures they institutional bulletins, associations’ notices deploy to uphold research ethics (Johnson, and government agencies gazettes. They can Parker & Clements, 2001). Practices carried also be presented at workshops, seminars out by researchers outside these regulatory and conferences, where learned guidelines constitute research misconduct. contributions, corrections and suggestions By definition, research misconduct can be synthesized into the research process entails fabrication, falsification or before publishing for public use. Such plagiarism in proposing, performing or rigorous vetting is essential considering the reviewing research or in reporting research fact that a published work is expected to be results (OSTP, 2002). Research misconduct an addition to existing knowledge and a may occur if the conduct represents a reference point for future studies. significant departure from accepted International Journal of Research & Review (www.ijrrjournal.com) 113 Vol.5; Issue: 3; March 2018 Joshua Abah Abah. The Quest for Statistical Significance: Ignorance, Bias and Malpractice of Research Practitioners practices; has been committed intentionally, essential for us to contemplate what knowingly or recklessly and can be proven responsible conduct of research by a preponderance of evidence (Inzana, actually entails and fully establish 2008). The ramification of research research ethics as an integral part of misconduct has been broaden to include our academic culture (p.1). other serious deviation from accepted guidelines of the scientific community for The pressure on academics to maintaining the integrity of research record increase their number of publications in line and retaliation of any kind against a person with requirements for promotion and career who reported or provided information about growth has also contributed to this grave suspected or alleged misconduct and who concern for research ethics. In the view of has not acted in bad faith (Fisehen, n.d.). Mullane and Williams (2013), bias in Among the three “cardinal sins” of research research, where prejudice or selectivity conduct, only plagiarism seems to be in the introduces a deviation in outcome beyond public eye, with the other
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