Table of Contents

Introduction

Part I. BACKGROUND AND FACILITATORS OF THE CRISIS

Chapter 1: Publication Bias
Chapter 2: False Positive Results and a Nontechnical Overview of their Modeling
Chapter 3: Questionable Research Practices (QRPs) and their Devastating Scientific Effects
Chapter 4: A Few Case Studies of QRP Driven Irreproducibility Effects
Chapter 5: The Return of Pathological Science (actually it never went away)

Part II. APPROACHES FOR IDENTIFYING IRREPRODUCIBLE FINDINGS

Chapter 6: The Replication Process
Chapter 7: Multiple-Study Replication Initiatives
Chapter 8: Damage Control for Learning that One's Study Failed to Replicate

PART III: STRATEGIES FOR INCREASING THE REPRODUCIBILITY OF PUBLISHED SCIENTIFIC RESULTS

Chapter 9: Publishing Issues and their Impact upon Reproducibility
Chapter 10: Preregistration, Data Sharing, and Other Salutary Behaviors
Chapter 11: A (Very) Few Concluding Thoughts

About the Author

R. Barker Bausell is Professor Emeritus at the University of Maryland, Baltimore, where he served as a research methodologist and biostatistician on the faculties of both the schools of medicine and nursing for over 30 years. He has authored 14 scientifically related books, and founded and served for 33 years as the Editor-in-Chief of the refereed medical evaluation journal Evaluation & the Health Professions.

Reviews

"We live in a time when fake news and untrustworthy information have invaded all walks of life; sadly this also includes the realm of science. This book is therefore both timely and useful. Barker Bausell has many years of research to his credit, and he evidently knows what he is writing about. In his new book, he explains why so many scientific publications are wrong or misleading and what damage irreproducible research can cause. He provides the reader with
the tools to identify unreliable science and shows us ways to rectify the problem. His book is essential reading for anyone who wants to learn the important skills of systematic assessment and critical
thinking. It is a must-read for aspiring scientists as well as for seasoned researchers or non-scientists who want to get a better understanding of the process of science, its strengths and its many weaknesses."

-- Edzard Ernst, MD, PhD, Emeritus Professor of Complementary Medicine, University of Exeter
"Science is said to be self-correcting: Falsifiable hypotheses are generated, tested, and the results are disseminated. The accrued knowledge moves the field forward, but only if it is valid. The classical test for a study's validity is replication--the same methods should yield similar results. Disappointingly, replication occurs less than half the time. One reason is that, if results do not support the original hypothesis, it is all too easy to hypothesize
after the results are known then report more 'publishable' results valued by academic journals. This and other systemic problems are comprehensively catalogued in this excellent book by Barker Bausell.
Fortunately, these problems have solutions, such as the Registered Reports model of peer review, and these are also catalogued here. This excellent book illuminates a path by which science can self-correct on a meta level and realize its full potential."
--Erick H. Turner, MD, Associate Professor, Oregon Health & Science University
"Throughout [R. Barker Bausell's] career, a common goal has been to ensure the integrity of science and to weed out irreproducible findings. So, it is appropriate that he now turns his gaze--sharp and critical yet also humorous and compassionate--to the reproducibility crisis. His latest book The Problem with Science: The Reproducibility Crisis and What to do About It is a well-documented description of the etiology of the problem, the facilitators of
irreproducibility, and the relatively straightforward individual and institutional behaviors that can be instituted to correct the problem. It is difficult to imagine anyone more qualified to bring the complex
issues surrounding the irreproducibility crisis to a wider audience."

-- Eric W. Manheimer, PhD, Co-Founder, Evidence Based Patient Decision Aids
"This book, The Problem with Science: The Reproducibility Crisis and What to do About It, is particularly timely and critical for all of us who do research as well as for those who consume research. Coming out after the Coronavirus pandemic, the book is an important reminder that the development of new knowledge needs to be taken slowly sometimes and carefully considered. What we want to see and believe may not really be there. Dr. Bausell has
decades of hands on experience as a biostatistician and has written numerous books on research design, statistics, and experimental design. Although relevant for all researchers and consumers of research, this book
should certainly be required reading for all students engaging in research careers."

-- Barbara Resnick, PhD, CRNP, Sonya Ziporkin Gershowitz Chair in Gerontology and Professor, University of Maryland School of Nursing