Arbeitspapier

Misinterpreting a failure to disconfirm as a confirmation: A recurrent misreading of significance tests

When a significance test fails to disconfirm a hypothesis economist often interpret this as evidence that this hypothesis is valid. Six such examples are cited from recent journals. But this is a misinterpretation of what significance tests show. Presumably this misinterpretation is founded on the valid principle that every failure to disconfirm a hypothesis adds to its credibility. But that principle defines a failure to disconfirm in a way that differs sharply from the way that this phrase is used in the context of significance tests. Some ways of ameliorating this problem exist.

Language
Englisch

Bibliographic citation
Series: Working Paper ; No. 01-8

Classification
Wirtschaft
Subject
significance tests
t values
t coefficients
confirmation
Statistischer Test
Theorie

Event
Geistige Schöpfung
(who)
Mayer, Thomas
Event
Veröffentlichung
(who)
University of California, Department of Economics
(where)
Davis, CA
(when)
2001

Handle
Last update
10.03.2025, 11:43 AM CET

Data provider

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Object type

  • Arbeitspapier

Associated

  • Mayer, Thomas
  • University of California, Department of Economics

Time of origin

  • 2001

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