C h a p t e r introduction to Scientific Research

Replication
Scientific knowledge is greatly advanced by replication. 
Replication
refers to the
reproduction of the results obtained from one study in additional studies. It is
important to remember this key point: Before you can trust the findings of a single
research study, you must determine whether the observed results are reliable. You
should always be cautious when interpreting findings from a single study in isolation
from other research. To make a general claim, you must know whether the same
results will be found if the study is repeated. If the observations are not repeatable,
the observations were either due to chance or they operate differently in different
contexts. If the variables of interest operate differently in different contexts, then
contextual factors must be systematically examined in additional research.
Failure to replicate the results of a previous study can be interpreted in several
ways because there are many possible reasons why it might occur. The first and
most obvious possibility is that the results of the prior study were due entirely to
chance, which means that the phenomenon that was previously identified did
not really exist. If the phenomenon did not exist, it obviously cannot be repro-
duced in a replication study. The second reason is that the replication experiment
16
|
Introduction to Scientific Research
Replication
The reproduction of
the results of a study
in a new study
Operationalization
Campbell’s term for an
operational defintion
M01_CHRI1650_11_SE_C01.QXD 3/6/10 5:47 PM Page 16

---

The Role of Theory in Scientific Research
|
17
Meta-analysis
A quantitative
technique for 
describing the 
relationship between
variables across 
multiple research
studies
might have altered some seemingly nonsignificant element of the experiment,
and this element in turn produced an altered response on the part of the research