Controversy over the merits of Null Hypothesis Statistical Significance Testing (NHST) as a tool for advancing knowledge in the social sciences has intensified in recent years. Literature for and against the use of statistical significant tests is reviewed and three major limitations of these tests are summarized. The first is that "p"…

The use of and emphasis on statistical significance testing has pervaded educational and behavioral research for many decades in spite of criticism by prominent researchers in this field. Much of the controversy is caused by lack of understanding or misinterpretations. This paper reviews criticisms of statistical significance testing and discusses…

Health care and educational trials face similar methodological challenges. Methodological reviews of health care trials have shown that a significant proportion have methodological flaws. Whether or not educational trials have a similar proportion of poor-quality trials is unknown. The authors undertook a methodological comparison between health…

Controversy over the proper place of significance testing within scientific methodology has continued for some time. The suggestion that effect sizes are more important than whether results are significant is presented. Effect size can be defined as an estimate of how much of the dependent variable is accounted for by the independent variables.…

A review of articles that report study results based on couple samples indicated response rates are rarely high enough for statistical inference. Four procedures that can be used to compensate for insufficient response rates (collecting information from nonparticipants, census comparisons, adjustment in analysis, and replication) are examined.…

Many research-related classes in social sciences present probability as a unified approach based upon mathematical axioms, but neglect the diversity of various probability theories and their associated philosophical assumptions. Although currently the dominant statistical and probabilistic approach is the Fisherian tradition, the use of Fisherian…

Outlines concerns that must be addressed by those who advocate replacing statistical hypothesis-testing with alternative data-analysis strategies. Suggests that commonly recommended alternatives are not perfect and that various hypothesis-testing modifications can be implemented to make the process and its conclusions more credible. Hypothesis…

Investigated the patterns of statistical usage and reporting in 756 articles published in the "American Educational Research Journal" (AERJ) and the "Journal of Counseling Psychology" (JCP) over 10 years. Evaluated the analytic practices used. Also discusses changes that may be necessary to improve statistics in behavioral…

An explanation of the misuse of statistical significance testing and the true meaning of "significance" is offered. Literature about the criticism of current practices of researchers and publications is reviewed in the context of tests of significance. The problem under consideration occurs when researchers attempt to do more than just establish…

This paper addresses the state of the art regarding the use of statistical significance tests (SSTs). How social science research will be conducted in the future is impacted directly by current debates regarding hypothesis testing. This paper: (1) briefly explicates the current debate on hypothesis testing; (2) reviews the newly published report…

Against an historical backdrop, this paper summarizes four uses of intraclass correlation of importance to contemporary researchers in the behavioral sciences. First, it shows how the intraclass correlation coefficient can be used to adjust confidence intervals for statistical significance testing when data are intracorrelated and the independence…

Discusses (1) the use of chi square significance tests in social science and educational literature; (2) chi square in relation to sample size; (3) field difficulties with chi square analysis as exemplified in Milwaukee County Juvenile Court data; and (4) alternative methods for using chi square in field research. (Author/GC)

The implications of data from a review of ten years of the American Educational Research Journal (AERJ) indicating that random sampling is rare and that there is increased use of quasi-experimental designs lacking in random assignment are considered. It is suggested that tests of significance could be abandoned or at least placed in a subsidiary…

D. W. Zimmerman argues that the interpretation by J. D. Gibbons and S. Chakraborti of recent simulation results and their recommendations are misleading and suggests use of an alternate test when homogeneity of variance and normality are violated. Gibbons and Chakraborti review their differences with Zimmerman's position. (SLD)

Reviews null hypothesis statistical significance testing (NHST) in its historical context and concludes that workable alternatives to NHST are available. Among suggested alternatives, effect magnitude measures, replication techniques, and meta-analytic techniques are discussed. (SLD)