Convergence across methods, not any single study, establishes scientific claims
Evidence
Marilynn Brewer cared about methodology. She recognized the benefits of multiple methods to converge on an idea, and her empirical work employed a variety of methodologies, from ethnography and field research to survey research and basic experimental laboratory research. Marilynn has been truly ambidextrous when it comes to data. Moreover, she has written widely on the proper understanding and creative use of research methodologies for testing hypotheses in the social sciences. — Roderick M. Kramer, Geoffrey J. Leonardelli, Robert W. Livingston, Social Cognition, Social Identity, and…, 79 (
#expands, via linked claim)
And any piece of research can be criticized at some level. As Jacob Cohen (1990) put it, “A successful piece of research doesn’t conclusively settle an issue, it just makes some theoretical proposition to some degree more likely” (p. 1311). Thus, as a consumer of research reports, you have to strike a delicate balance between being overly critical and overly accepting. — John T. Jost and Jim Sidanius, Political Psychology, 4592 (
#complicates, via linked claim)
Categorization
- XREF: connects to: Research findings only make propositions more likely, never conclusive.; Convergent evidence from diverse methods strengthens scientific claims — Roderick M. Kramer, Geoffrey J. Leonardelli, Robert W. Livingston, Social Cognition, Social Identity, and…, 79; Convergent correlational evidence should justify action absent perfect scientific certainty — Harriet A. Washington, A Terrible Thing to Waste, 50 (+5 more)
Broader Connections
- Convergent evidence from diverse methods strengthens scientific claims
#expands(0.95) — Roderick M. Kramer, Geoffrey J. Leonardelli, Robert W. Livingston, Social Cognition, Social Identity, and…, 79 - Converging multiple research methods strengthens confidence in a finding
#expands(0.93) - No research definitively settles an issue; it only shifts probabilities
#complicates(0.75) — John T. Jost and Jim Sidanius, Political Psychology, 4592 - The random-walk hypothesis coexisted with contrary evidence from its earliest formulations.
#complicates(0.72) — Donald MacKenzie, An Engine, Not a Camera, 416