title: Negative results: negative perceptions limit their potential for increasing reproducibility.
abstract: Negative results are an important building block in the development of scientific thought, primarily because most likely the vast majority of data is negative, i.e., there is not a favorable outcome. Only very limited data is positive, and that is what tends to get published, albeit alongside a sub-set of negative results to emphasize the positive nature of the positive results. Yet, not all negative results get published. Part of the problem lies with a traditional mind-set and rigid publishing frame-work that tends to view negative results in a negative light, or that only tends to reward scientists primarily for presenting positive findings. This opinion piece indicates that in addition to a deficient mind-set, there are also severe limitations in the availability of publishing channels where negative results could get published.
authors.affiliation: , P.O. Box 7, Miki-cho Post Office, Ikenobe 3011-2, Kagawa-ken, 761-0799, Japan. jaimetex@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Jaime A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Teixeira da Silva
mesh_terms: D001290:Attitude; D005188:False Negative Reactions; D006801:Humans; D010465:Perception; D015203:Reproducibility of Results