Performance Analysis · Reading the result · Component
The finding
What the analysis actually shows, with effect size — because a real effect too small to matter is expensive to act on.
The deliverable
What it is
Direction without magnitude invites over-reaction. A confirmed but tiny effect is frequently acted on as though it were large, because the finding was reported as a direction.
Separating what was found from what it means keeps the two arguable independently, which is what allows a disagreement to be productive.
One level in
What it is made of
Each element is a constituent part of the component. Follow one to see the attributes it carries.
The effect size
Whether the effect is large enough to matter.
3 attributes: Practical size · Threshold · Material
LearnThe interpretation
What the analyst thinks it means.
3 attributes: Interpretation · Supported by method · Confidence
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A statistically clear effect worth a rounding error is common, and it is frequently acted on as though it were large.
The other components in reading the result
The alternatives
Other explanations for the same result, and which can be excluded — because a finding with unexcluded alternatives is a hypothesis.
LearnThe confidence
How much weight the finding can bear, stated rather than implied — because an unstated confidence is read as certainty.
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