Why the P-value culture is bad and confidence intervals a better alternative

Osteoarthritis Cartilage. 2012 Aug;20(8):805-8. doi: 10.1016/j.joca.2012.04.001. Epub 2012 Apr 11.

Abstract

In spite of frequent discussions of misuse and misunderstanding of probability values (P-values) they still appear in most scientific publications, and the disadvantages of erroneous and simplistic P-value interpretations grow with the number of scientific publications. Osteoarthritis and Cartilage prefer confidence intervals. This is a brief discussion of problems surrounding P-values and confidence intervals.

Publication types

  • Editorial

MeSH terms

  • Bias*
  • Confidence Intervals*
  • Data Interpretation, Statistical*
  • Humans
  • Probability*
  • Reproducibility of Results