Methods
Hypothesis
A testable claim that states what relationship or behavior the research expects to observe.
- A useful hypothesis includes a measurable outcome and a condition that would reject or weaken the claim.
Related: pre-analysis plan, primary metric, falsifiability
Methods
Primary metric
The main measurement used to judge whether a result supports the research question.
- Secondary metrics can explain context, but they should not replace the primary metric after results are known.
Related: scorecard, benchmark, decision rule
Methods
Pre-analysis plan
A written note that defines the question, sample, metric, and decision rule before reviewing the final result.
- The plan reduces hindsight editing and makes exploratory work easier to label honestly.
Related: hypothesis, research journal, p-hacking
Educational boundary
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