Roundtable: Statistically Significant or Not? Does It Matter? Implications of the American Statistical Association Statement on Statistical Significance and P-Values
(Tools of Analysis: Methods, Data, Informatics and Research Design)

Friday, November 4, 2016: 8:30 AM-10:00 AM
Columbia 11 (Washington Hilton)

*Names in bold indicate Presenter



The Board of Directors of the American Statistical Association (ASA) recently took an unprecedented step in its history by issuing a policy statement about statistical significance and p-values. This statement focuses on the p-value, a statistic that is too often misunderstood and misused. The ASA statement is designed to usher in a post p-value era to bring the full force of statistical analysis to producing scientific evidence. This roundtable will discuss the implications of this statement for generating evidence on program and policy effectiveness. The speakers include the executive director of the ASA and a set of researchers and practitioners who are users of evidence in making program and policy decisions.

Roundtable Organizers:  Allen Schirm, Mathematica Policy Research
Moderators:  Allen Schirm, Mathematica Policy Research
Speakers:  Ron Wasserstein, American Statistical Association, Stuart Buck, Laura and John Arnold Foundation, Naomi Goldstein, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and Anne Ricciuti, U.S. Department of Education

The Board of Directors of the American Statistical Association (ASA) recently took an unprecedented step in its history by issuing a policy statement about statistical significance and p-values. This statement focuses on the p-value, a statistic that is too often misunderstood and misused in the research community. The ASA statement is designed to usher in a post p-value era to bring the full force of statistical analysis to producing scientific evidence. This roundtable will discuss the implications of this statement for generating evidence on program and policy effectiveness. The panelists include the executive director of the ASA and a set of researcher and practitioners who are users of evidence in making program and policy decisions.