“It is impossible to tell how widespread data torturing is. Like other forms of torture, it leaves no incriminating marks when done skillfully. And like other forms of torture, it may be difficult to prove even when there is incriminating evidence.”
—J. L. Mills

When will academics, Six Sigma belts, and consultants wake up and realize that, despite their best efforts, most people in their audiences will not correctly use the statistics they’ve been taught—including many of the teachers themselves?

Sometimes I wonder if they are exacting revenge on their captive audiences for being beaten up on the playground 25 years ago.

The clinical publications world is especially a hotbed for inappropriate uses of statistics. Many people are guilty of looking for the most dramatic, positive findings in their data, and who can blame them? If study data are manipulated enough, they can be made to appear to prove whatever the investigator wants to prove. When this process goes beyond reasonable interpretation of the facts, it becomes data torturing.

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