Never Waste a Good Crisis - Statistical Reasoning in Science

In this review of Never Waste a Good Crisis the bottom line is clear: researchers, journal editors, and methodologists who care about the trustworthiness of empirical findings will find this book sharply useful. Klaas Sijtsma examines how fabrication, falsification and questionable research practices translate into distorted results and offers a practical remedy centered on transparent data publication and professional statistical support. The book reads as a focused, method-aware critique and a call to action rather than a textbook, making it valuable for those who want a readable, evidence-based discussion of how poor analytical choices compromise science.

Key Features

• Focus on research integrity: Explains how deliberate misconduct such as fabrication and falsification directly undermines scientific conclusions and reproducibility.
• Attention to questionable practices: Describes how common researcher glitches and questionable research practices can arise from inadequate mastery of statistical methods.
• Practical prevention strategy: Advocates publishing data in public repositories as a clear step to improve transparency and enable verification.
• Advice for nonstatisticians: Urges researchers who are not trained statisticians to seek professional support rather than overestimate their skills when analyzing data.
• Relates statistical reasoning to broader issues of trust and policy, making the content relevant beyond narrow academic circles.

Who It's For

This book is best for active researchers, doctoral students, journal editors and policy makers who want a readable, principled account of how poor statistical practice and misconduct bias results and what can be done about it. It serves as a useful conversation starter for research groups updating their data policies or ethics training.

Those looking for a step-by-step statistics textbook or detailed software tutorials should look elsewhere; the emphasis here is on reasoning, integrity and institutional remedies rather than technical instruction in specific statistical packages.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Clear explanation of the causal link between data manipulation and erroneous findings.
• Realistic, implementable recommendation to publish data in repositories to boost transparency.
• Helpful reminder that many questionable practices stem from insufficient statistical training, not always bad intent.

Cons

• Not a substitute for hands-on statistical training or software guidance.

Specifications

Title	Never Waste a Good Crisis (ASA-CRC Series)
Author / Brand	Klaas Sijtsma
Subject focus	Statistical reasoning, research integrity, questionable practices
Primary recommendation	Publish data in public repositories
Target audience	Researchers, editors, policy makers, methodologists
Approach	Analytic discussion of causes and remedies for untrustworthy results

Our Verdict

Never Waste a Good Crisis is a tightly argued, pragmatic book for anyone invested in improving scientific trustworthiness. It is good value for researchers and editors who need a clear rationale for data sharing policies and for teams deciding when to involve professional statisticians, though readers seeking technical instruction will need complementary resources.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does the book explain how to share data?
It endorses publishing data in publicly available repositories as a central remedy but focuses on rationale and policy rather than step-by-step repository instructions.

Who benefits most from reading this book?
Researchers, journal editors and research managers benefit most because the book links flawed practices to concrete institutional responses.

Is this a statistics textbook?
No; the book emphasizes statistical reasoning and research integrity rather than providing hands-on statistical methods or software tutorials.