Title: Anecdotal evidence | Psychology Wiki | Fandom
Headings: Anecdotal evidence
Anecdotal evidence
Contents
Introduction
Scientific context
Anecdotal evidence and faulty logic
Law
Scientific evidence as legal evidence
References
Bibliography
See also

Content: Scientific context
In science, anecdotal evidence has been defined as: "information that is not based on facts or careful study"
"non-scientific observations or studies, which do not provide proof but may assist research efforts"
"reports or observations of usually unscientific observers"
"casual observations or indications rather than rigorous or scientific analysis"
"information passed along by word-of-mouth but not documented scientifically"
Anecdotal evidence can have varying degrees of formality. For instance, in medicine, published anecdotal evidence is called a case report, which is a more formalized type of evidence subjected to peer review. Although such evidence is not regarded as scientific, it is sometimes regarded as an invitation to more rigorous scientific study of the phenomenon in question. For instance, one study found that 35 of 47 anecdotal reports of side effects were later sustained as “clearly correct.” Researchers may use anecdotal evidence for suggesting new hypotheses, but never as supporting evidence. Anecdotal evidence and faulty logic
Anecdotal evidence is often unscientific or pseudoscientific because various forms of cognitive bias may affect the collection or presentation of evidence. For instance, someone who claims to have had an encounter with a supernatural being or alien may present a very vivid story, but this is not falsifiable. This phenomenon can also happen to large groups of people through subjective validation . Anecdotal evidence is also frequently misinterpreted via the availability heuristic, which leads to an overestimation of prevalence.