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. 2025 Feb 4;122(5):e2401229121.
doi: 10.1073/pnas.2401229121. Epub 2025 Jan 27.

Discourse on measurement

Arthur Paul Pedersen  1 , David Kellen  2 , Conor Mayo-Wilson  3 , Clintin P Davis-Stober  4 , John C Dunn  5 , M Ali Khan  6 , Maxwell B Stinchcombe  7 , Michael L Kalish  2 , Katya Tentori  8 , Julia Haaf  9
Affiliations

Discourse on measurement

Arthur Paul Pedersen et al. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. .

Abstract

Measurement literacy is required for strong scientific reasoning, effective experimental design, conceptual and empirical validation of measurement quantities, and the intelligible interpretation of error in theory construction. This discourse examines how issues in measurement are posed and resolved and addresses potential misunderstandings. Examples drawn from across the sciences are used to show that measurement literacy promotes the goals of scientific discourse and provides the necessary foundation for carving out perspectives and carrying out interventions in science.

Keywords: error; measurement literacy; policy-making; scientific reasoning.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests statement:The authors declare no competing interest.

Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
Left panel, Illustration of how additive (ANOVA) effects at the level of a quantitative attribute (memory strength; see Left panel), by virtue of a nonlinear relationship (center panel), implies an interaction effect at the level of an outcome variable (probability of recall; see Right panel).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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