Questionable Interpretive Practices

This chapter reviews the role of questionable interpretive practices (QIPs) in leading to false scientific conclusions. After briefly reviewing some recent examples of scientific mythmaking, we identify four types of QIPS that are the focus of this chapter: blind spots/cherry-picking; selective calls for rigor; mythmaking; and phantom facts. The chapter then reviews examples of each QIP that can be found in the psychological and/or social science literature, and describes each in sufficient detail to convey exactly how and why the wrong conclusion was reached. We conclude by identifying both general strategies and specific practices that researchers can adopt to limit their vulnerability to QIPs and therefore improve the validity of their conclusions.