The Conditional Concession Rate: A New Proxy for Measuring Scientific Rigor
RexDouglass · x · 2026-08-02
Rex Douglass proposed a new proxy metric for evaluating whether an academic field is "real" or rigorous: the Conditional Concession Rate.
This metric measures the probability that an author publicly withdraws or materially narrows their original claims, given that a critique of their work is correct, important, and has reached the author. He argues that if authors in a field never concede to valid criticisms, the field lacks fundamental falsifiability.
Related event: Scholars Propose 'Conditional Concession Rate' to Measure Academic Rigor(2 posts)→
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