The appendix of Frey includes a list of errors based on evolutionary psychology (EP) – some acquired during development of our species, some acquired during individual ontogenesis. It is certainly the best what I have read since the famous study biases by Spilker – certainly a nice enterprise to match both lists and answering the question how any EP error leads to a study error.
Here it comes – and I already excuse for errors that I may have introduced during backtranslation:
- Persistent first hypothesis
- Perseverance on opinions
- Missing attempts to falsify
- Ignoring controversial facts
- Blindness for own errors
- Biased expectations
- Exaggerated tendency for pattern recognition
- “Ghost” causality, overinterpretation of weak correlations
- Classification errors by similiarity
- Framing effect: Ignoring contexts
- Anchor effect: Irrelevant starting point
- Overgeneralization
- Assuming simplicity in a complex system
- Reduction of complexity ny ignoring interaction and feedback
- Networks treated as independent subnets
- Reduction of complexity assuming linear relationships
- Assuming state instead of process
- Problem priority by ostensible conspicuousness instead of importance
- Treating problems with methods of own discipline only
- Linear extrapolation of associations
- Insufficient control of posthoc developments
- Use of strong heuristical filtering and radical break conditions
The book is a must read for every scientist; it has a lot of practical examples and receipts how to avoid these errors.
Selected links: confirmation bias | other bias | research conduct | EP | essays