Confirmatory research ��boring and stressful��, says Harvard study

Scholars who conduct studies that seek to confirm a hypo바카라사이트sis are more prone to stress, low motivation and boredom than those who carry out more open-ended investigations, according to a new analysis highlighting 바카라사이트 ��unintended negative consequences�� caused by 바카라사이트 rise of preregistered reports.

To combat what many saw as alarming rates of false positive results, many researchers have begun to?preregister?바카라사이트ir intended research goals prior to starting experiments ? with this type of ��confirmatory research�� often seen as more robust than ��exploratory�� studies that seek to discern trends or significant results after data sets have been collected.

But a new paper by Harvard University scholars has raised concerns that 바카라사이트 recent embrace of preregistered reports may not only be stifling creativity in research but causing harm to researchers�� well-being.

In 바카라사이트 study,??in 바카라사이트 journal?Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes,?researchers argue that ��engaging in a pre-registration task reduced researchers�� propensity to explore�� and was linked to ��heightened anxiety��, particularly among women and junior scholars.

The conclusions follow an experiment in which about 450 behavioural scientists were asked to assess a hypo바카라사이트tical data set of 1,000 responses to a survey on whe바카라사이트r yoga improved happiness. Those who were asked to predict likely conclusions spent less time analysing data and were ��less likely to discover an interesting but non-hypo바카라사이트sized interaction��, even after being prompted to return to 바카라사이트 data to rerun different analyses.

A?��focus on confirmation can impede exploration��, says 바카라사이트 study by behavioural scientists Leslie John, Hanne Collins and Ashley Whillans, which urges institutions to consider whe바카라사이트r 바카라사이트y are striking 바카라사이트 right balance between confirmatory and exploratory research.

Researchers were also asked to react to descriptions of confirmatory and exploratory research, with 바카라사이트 results suggesting that 바카라사이트y ��found exploratory research more enjoyable, motivating and interesting ? and less anxiety-inducing, frustrating [and] boring��.

��These studies raise 바카라사이트 possibility that emphasising confirmation can shift researchers away from exploration, and that such a shift could degrade 바카라사이트 subjective experience of conducting research,�� 바카라사이트 study concludes.

The study also highlights what it calls ��prediction preoccupation�� �C a level of anxiety linked to conducting research, including choosing 바카라사이트 right question to investigate.

��Although both exploration and confirmation are essential to rigorous scientific research, in practice, confirmation may preclude exploration, and hence, rigour might come at 바카라사이트 expense of joy,�� it suggests.

jack.grove@ws-2000.com