Both Questionable and Open Research Practices Are Prevalent in Education Research

Bibliographic Data

ID9733444
AuthorsMatthew C Makel (0000-0002-3837-0088, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Md, corresponding author), Jaret Hodges (0000-0002-4427-5247, University of North Texas, Denton, TX), Bryan G Cook (0000-0001-9294-0873, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Va), Jonathan A Plucker (0000-0002-5327-0851, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Md)
Year2021
Volume50
Issue8
Pages493-504
Publication date2021-11-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueEducational Researcher (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0013-189X • E-ISSN: 1935-102X
PublisherAmerican Educational Research Association (AERA) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.3102/0013189x211001356
OpenAlexW3134417698
LanguageEN
Citations received18
References cited44

Concerns about the conduct of research are pervasive in many fields, including education. In this preregistered study, we replicated and extended previous studies from other fields by asking education researchers about 10 questionable research practices and five open research practices. We asked them to estimate the prevalence of the practices in the field, to self-report their own use of such practices, and to estimate the appropriateness of these behaviors in education research. We made predictions under four umbrella categories: comparison to psychology, geographic location, career stage, and quantitative orientation. Broadly, our results suggest that both questionable and open research practices are used by many education researchers. This baseline information will be useful as education researchers seek to understand existing social norms and grapple with whether and how to improve research practices

Best practice · Educational research · Field (mathematics · Pedagogy · Political science · Public relations · Sociology · Applied Psychology · Educational Assessment and Improvement · Meta-analysis and systematic reviews · Online Learning and Analytics · Psychology

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