Crowdsourcing hypothesis tests: Making transparent how design choices shape research results

To what extent are research results influenced by subjective decisions that scientists make as they design studies? Fifteen research teams independently designed studies to answer fiveoriginal research questions related to moral judgments, negotiations, and implicit cognition. Participants from two separate large samples (total N > 15,000) were then randomly assigned to complete one version of each study. Effect sizes varied dramatically across different sets of materials designed to test the same hypothesis: materials from different teams renderedstatistically significant effects in opposite directions for four out of five hypotheses, with the narrowest range in estimates being d = -0.37 to +0.26. Meta-analysis and a Bayesian perspective on the results revealed overall support for two hypotheses, and a lack of support for three hypotheses. Overall, practically none of the variability in effect sizes was attributable to the skill of the research team in designing materials, while considerable variability was attributable to the hypothesis being tested. In a forecasting survey, predictions of other scientists were significantly correlated with study results, both across and within hypotheses. Crowdsourced testing of research hypotheses helps reveal the true consistency of empirical support for a scientific claim.</div

Examining the generalizability of research findings from archival data

This initiative examined systematically the extent to which a large set of archival research findings generalizes across contexts. We repeated the key analyses for 29 original strategic management effects in the same context (direct reproduction) as well as in 52 novel time periods and geographies; 45% of the reproductions returned results matching the original reports together with 55% of tests in different spans of years and 40% of tests in novel geographies. Some original findings were associated with multiple new tests. Reproducibility was the best predictor of generalizability—for the findings that proved directly reproducible, 84% emerged in other available time periods and 57% emerged in other geographies. Overall, only limited empirical evidence emerged for context sensitivity. In a forecasting survey, independent scientists were able to anticipate which effects would find support in tests in new samples

The Open Anchoring Quest Dataset: Anchored Estimates from 96 Studies on Anchoring Effects

People’s estimates are biased toward previously considered numbers (anchoring). We have aggregated all available data from anchoring studies that included at least two anchors into one large dataset. Data were standardized to comprise one estimate per row, coded according to a wide range of variables, and are available for download and analyses online (https://metaanalyses.shinyapps.io/OpAQ/). Because the dataset includes both original and meta-data it allows for fine-grained analyses (e.g., correlations of estimates for different tasks) but also for meta-analyses (e.g., effect sizes for anchoring effects)

The replication database: documenting the replicability of psychological science

In psychological science, replicability — repeating a study with a new sample achieving consistent results (Parsons et al., 2022) — is critical for affirming the validity of scientific findings. Despite its importance, replication efforts are few and far between in psychological science with many attempts failing to corroborate past findings. This scarcity, compounded by the difficulty in accessing replication data, jeopardizes the efficient allocation of research resources and impedes scientific advancement. Addressing this crucial gap, we present the Replication Database (https://forrt-replications.shinyapps.io/fred_explorer), a novel platform hosting 1,239 original findings paired with replication findings. The infrastructure of this database allows researchers to submit, access, and engage with replication findings. The database makes replications visible, easily findable via a graphical user interface, and tracks replication rates across various factors, such as publication year or journal. This will facilitate future efforts to evaluate the robustness of psychological research

Multicomponent direct detection of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons by surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy using silver nanoparticles functionalized with the viologen host lucigenin

Silver nanoparticles (NPs) functionalized with the molecular assembler bis-acridinium dication lucigenin (LG) have been used as a chemical sensor system to detect a group of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) pollutants in a multicomponent mixture by means of surface-enhanced raman scattering (SERS). The effectiveness of this system was checked for a group of PAHs with different numbers of fused benzene rings, namely anthracene, pyrene, triphenylene, benzo[c]phenanthrene, chrysene, and coronene. In order to determine the host capacity of this sensor system, the self-assembly of the LG viologen on a metallic surface has been checked by analyzing SERS intensities of PAH bands at different LG concentrations. The NP-LG-analyte affinity is derived from the analysis of PAH band intensities at different concentrations of pollutants, the adsorption isotherm of each PAH on NP-LG cavities has been studied, and the corresponding adsorption constants have been evaluated. The limit of detection at trace-level concentration is confirmed by the presence of their characteristic fingerprint vibrational bands. The SERS spectra of PAH mixtures confirm that LG viologen dication shows a higher analytical selectivity to PAHs constituted by four fused benzene rings, mainly pyrene and benzo[c]phenanthrene, in agreement with their higher affinity which is also related to their better fit into the intermolecular LG cavities. As a conclusion, SERS spectra recorded on modified NP-LG surfaces are a powerful chemical tool to detect organic pollutants. © 2011 American Chemical Society.This work was supported by Spanish MICINN (projects CTQ2009-08549 and FIS2010-15405) and by Comunidad Aut onoma de Madrid (project S2009/TIC-1476 MICROSERES II).Peer Reviewe