Dodhia, R. (2007). Misuse of statistics. Psychology Essay

Misuse of Statistics
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Misuse of Statistics
Dodhia (2007) explains the different ways in which statistical data is misrepresented and misinterpreted. Statistical analysis is mostly misapplied, and the negative results of the decisions made based on the misapplication of the analysis take a longer period to be revealed. According to Dodhia (2007), the use of 3-D charts and irrelevant scales can be very confusing and misleading, and therefore, it would be more appropriate to use 2-D charts and incorporate at least one end of the scale to a chart. However, my thoughts are that 2-D charts can be as equally misleading as 3-D charts. Despite 3-D charts being regarded as misleading because of their visual representation, 2-D charts can also be confusing when it comes to relative size illusions. In cases where the neighboring bar affects an individual’s perception of the entire chart, then it would be impossible to accurately interpret the data. Therefore, using a 2-D chart would not guarantee accuracy in displaying the data as stated by Dodhia (2007). Nonetheless, it is necessary to incorporate standard errors when comparing different magnitudes since standard errors are not only reliable in determining the accuracy of the difference in mean, but also the accuracy with which the samples represent a population.
The difference between causation and correlation is often misunderstood. Different sets of data can have a reasonable correlation. However, this does not mean that one set of data causes the other. Therefore, similarly to what Dodhia suggests, it would be necessary to understand that correlation does not imply causation. Besides that, carrying out multiple experiments before making a casual explanation is advantageous, but only if certain circumstances are avoided. For example, in tests that use within-...