Are Most Positive Findings in Psychology False or Exaggerated in 2024?

What becomes of independent activism to improve the trustworthiness of psychological science? A 2024 reassessment of my 2014 interview with Australian National University statistician Mike Smithson.

Cyberharassment and the activist urge to improve the trustworthiness of the psychology literature.

Were the prospects for improving the trustworthiness of psychological literature I raised in talks in Australia in 2014 fulfilled, or were they derailed in the following years? Did pointing out blatant hype and hokum in the psychology journals prove an effective corrective a decade ago? Or, in hindsight, did our activism prove dangerous in terms of inviting reprisals because we were violating well-established but unspoken norms? Should we warn others to avoid being lured into harming themselves by attempts to remove poor-quality science from psychology journals?

Stalked and doxxed: slings and arrows of reprisal.

With some time and distance, it is useful to review harassment that was going on in the background in 2014. It persists but could take a different turn in 2024-2025.

Criticizing flawed research has its costs, and we need to decide what responsibility bystanders have to preserve …