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Bias, Anyone?
Purpose
To investigate how bias influences scientific claims
Materials

science news article
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highlighter
Scenario
This is exciting news! Or is it? Sometimes the science news we see on television or read about in the
newspaper is exaggerated. Sometimes it’s biased.
Personal bias, cultural bias, and experimental bias are three different kinds of bias that can influence
the results of a science experiment. But when you read a news story, how can you tell that bias is
present?
You should suspect that a science claim is inaccurate or exaggerated if it is announced to the media
rather than reported in a science journal. Are there other signs to look for? The answer is yes! Any of
the three kinds of bias can lead to similar problems that you can spot.
Procedure
1. What Are the Signs? In this investigation you will search for signs of bias in a real science
article. First, you need to practice finding bias by carefully rereading the article above. Signs of
bias come in three forms: the language used, the data reported, and the source of the study. In the
next four steps you will read about what makes good science, and then you will identify evidence
of bias in the article above.
2. The Language of Science Good scientists choose their words carefully. They do not exaggerate
their claims or make strong emotional statements, and their conclusions are always supported by
data. The words “scientifically proven” are a potential sign that something is wrong. A real
scientist tries to find evidence that supports the hypothesis being tested, but support never proves
the hypothesis.
3. Looking At the Sample Is the sample appropriate? A sample is a small group selected from a
larger group called the population. Sampling bias occurs when a sample does not reflect the entire
population being studied.
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Procedure (continued)
4. Looking At the Measurements Are the measurements appropriate for the conclusion presented?
Does the experiment take into account the effect of other factors? Did the experiment run long
enough? Were the measurements accurate? You may not find this information in a news story. But
if the story says that the findings were reported in the New England Journal of Medicine—or
another science journal—that’s a good sign. The scientific community uses peer-reviewed journals,
checked and approved by experts, to ensure the quality of the science.
5. Looking At the Source Where was the study done, and who paid for it? Scientists do their research
at universities, corporations, and at government agencies. Money for the research comes from
special-interest groups, corporations, and the government. Any organization can run a good
experiment and produce unbiased data, but the need to promote a special interest or make a profit
may lead to bias. The source doesn’t prove bias, but it should make the reader skeptical.
6. Discussing What Was Found Your teacher will now ask for volunteers to identify signs of bias they
found in the article. If not everyone agrees about whether or not something is a sign of bias, listen
to both sides and vote on the issue.
7. Analyzing a Real Science Article Now read a real science article and highlight any sign of bias you
find.
Conclusion
Let’s see what you learned about bias.
1. Why is an exaggerated claim a sign of bias?
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2. What is one sign that might indicate experimental bias?
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3. Is it possible for a scientist to be unbiased when working on research funded by a special-interest
group? Explain.
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4. If a newspaper article reports a science finding that was first published in a peer-reviewed journal, is it
most likely biased or unbiased? Explain.
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Write a brief summary of the article you read. In a concluding paragraph, describe the signs of bias you
found or the features of the research that indicate a lack of bias.