Biomaterial Database

"Choice-supportive bias" in science: Explanation and mitigation. 2021

Mahdi Kafaee, and Hanie Marhamati, and Shahriar Gharibzadeh

Department of Electrical Engineering and Robotics, Shahrood University of Technology, Shahrood, Iran.

Mistakes in scientific research, their origins, and the possible solutions have always been noteworthy. On the other hand, researchers in some fields have focused on cognitive biases and their interventions in thinking and information processing. In this article, by bridging between these two issues, i.e., scientific research mistakes and cognitive bias, it will be first shown that scientific research requires scientists' choices in various stages such as subject selection, data treatment, theory determination, and technological design. Then, we show the involvement of choice-supportive bias in scientific inquiry as one of the potential cognitive limitations of science. Finally, three ways are discussed to mitigate the effects of this bias in science: more scores to self-criticism publications, recording of the shortcomings of the research by the researcher before publishing, and emphasizing control processes before researcher choices in scientific inquiry.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D011643	Publishing	"The business or profession of the commercial production and issuance of literature" (Webster's 3d). It includes the publisher, publication processes, editing and editors. Production may be by conventional printing methods or by electronic publishing.	Electronic Publishing,Publishing, Electronic,Electronic Publishings,Publishings, Electronic
D012108	Research Personnel	Those individuals engaged in research.	Clinical Investigator,Clinical Investigators,Researchers,Investigator, Clinical,Investigators,Investigators, Clinical,Survey Personnel,Investigator,Personnel, Research,Personnel, Survey,Researcher
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D015871	Scientific Misconduct	Intentional falsification of scientific data by presentation of fraudulent or incomplete or uncorroborated findings as scientific fact.	Ethics in Publishing,Fraud, Scientific,Fraudulent Data,Research Misconduct,Scientific Dishonesty,Data, Fraudulent,Dishonesties, Scientific,Dishonesty, Scientific,Frauds, Scientific,Misconduct, Research,Misconduct, Scientific,Publishing, Ethics in,Scientific Dishonesties,Scientific Fraud,Scientific Frauds
D015982	Bias	Any deviation of results or inferences from the truth, or processes leading to such deviation. Bias can result from several sources: one-sided or systematic variations in measurement from the true value (systematic error); flaws in study design; deviation of inferences, interpretations, or analyses based on flawed data or data collection; etc. There is no sense of prejudice or subjectivity implied in the assessment of bias under these conditions.	Aggregation Bias,Bias, Aggregation,Bias, Ecological,Bias, Statistical,Bias, Systematic,Ecological Bias,Outcome Measurement Errors,Statistical Bias,Systematic Bias,Bias, Epidemiologic,Biases,Biases, Ecological,Biases, Statistical,Ecological Biases,Ecological Fallacies,Ecological Fallacy,Epidemiologic Biases,Experimental Bias,Fallacies, Ecological,Fallacy, Ecological,Scientific Bias,Statistical Biases,Truncation Bias,Truncation Biases,Bias, Experimental,Bias, Scientific,Bias, Truncation,Biase, Epidemiologic,Biases, Epidemiologic,Biases, Truncation,Epidemiologic Biase,Error, Outcome Measurement,Errors, Outcome Measurement,Outcome Measurement Error