Positive Study Results? Check the Funder.
HealthDay has an article about a study of studies. When beverage companies fund a study, the results are more likely to come down in the beverage's favor.
Shocking, I know. But it's worth remembering when you see scientific studies trumpeting the health benefits of your favorite beverage.
In 1993, Stephen Jay Gould wrote an essay entitled "Cordelia's Dilemma" describing the aversion to publishing negative results. Few scientists put forth a hypothesis and then publish results that don't support it. At best, they silently discard the results, ensuring that other scientists have to duplicate their work. At worst, they run the experiment until the results support the hypothesis, and then they publish those results. You don't see the 99 other trials that failed. It's easy to see how a corporate funder could create a "Cordelia's Dilemma" for a research team.
via BodyHack
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