Demystifying p-values

December 31, 2022

There is a tremendous amount of confusion around what a p-value actually is, despite their widespread use in science. Here is my attempt to explain the concept of p-values concisely and clearly (including why they are useful and what often goes wrong with them). — What's a p-value? — If you run a study, then (all else equal, aside from rare edge cases) the lower the p-value, the lower the chance that your results are due to random chance or luck. More precisely: a p-value is the probab...

14 Signs A Study Is More Likely To Be Trustworthy

July 2, 2020

Science is incredible, but not all studies are reliable. In fact, they frequently aren't. So how can we tell when a study is trustworthy? Here are 14 signs to look for (for studies involving humans): 1) Large: a reasonably large number of study participants (20 per group is usually too small - the sample size should be large enough to give the study the power it needs to have a good chance of detecting an effect if the effect is indeed real) 2) Controlled: if the study is making claims to...