Validity and Reliability in Research
Validity and reliability are two foundational concepts in research quality. Reliability refers to the consistency and reproducibility of measurements: do repeated applications of an instrument yield the same results? Validity refers to the truthfulness of inferences: does an instrument measure what it claims to measure, and do study findings answer the research question appropriately? Cronbach and Meehl (1955) distinguished construct validity from other validity types; Campbell and Stanley (1963) categorized internal and external validity threats in experimental designs; and Messick (1995) unified validity concepts as 'the degree to which evidence and theory support the intended interpretations of test scores.' Contemporary frameworks encompass multiple validity types (construct, criterion, content, internal, external) and reliability estimates tailored to measurement context.
Source record
Citations copied verbatim from the method’s source record. No claim-level verification is inferred from them.
- Shadish, W. R., Cook, T. D., & Campbell, D. T. (2002). Experimental and Quasi-Experimental Designs for Generalized Causal Inference. Houghton Mifflin. · URL
- Messick, S. (1995). Validity of psychological assessment: validation of inferences from persons' responses and performances as scientific inquiry into score meaning. American Psychologist, 50(9), 741–749. · DOI 10.1037/0003-066X.50.9.741
- Cronbach, L. J., & Meehl, P. E. (1955). Construct validity in psychological tests. Psychological Bulletin, 52(4), 281–302. · DOI 10.1037/h0040957
Curated claims
Claims persisted in the evidence ledger, each with its own assessment.
This view does not invent a claim assessment when the ledger has none.
Related methods
Generated from the method graph and shown as machine-suggested relations — no evidence claim is inferred.