Dan Ariely accused of manually altering data in his 2002 paper, his 4th most-cited with 2,200+ citations
RobbWiller · x · 2026-09-03
Evidence shared on X suggests behavioral economist Dan Ariely literally altered data points in his 2002 paper between submission and acceptance to produce the result referees required — arguably more damning than the retracted "sign at the top" paper (400 citations).
Key points:
- The implicated paper is Ariely's 4th most-cited, with over 2,200 citations
- The only reason it surfaced: his senior coauthor made him share the data with Hyndman back when Ariely was a PhD student
- Ariely reportedly cannot produce any records of the original study and "doesn't remember" details
Commentators note this fuels doubts about the integrity of his broader body of work.
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