P-values - a chronic conundrum.

ABSTRACT:

Background

In medical research and practice, the p-value is arguably the most often used statistic and yet it is widely misconstrued as the probability of the type I error, which comes with serious consequences. This misunderstanding can greatly affect the reproducibility in research, treatment selection in medical practice, and model specification in empirical analyses. By using plain language and concrete examples, this paper is intended to elucidate the p-value confusion from its root, to explicate the difference between significance and hypothesis testing, to illuminate the consequences of the confusion, and to present a viable alternative to the conventional p-value.

Main text

The confusion with p-values has plagued the research community and medical practitioners for d

SUBMITTER: Gao J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7315482 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature