Publication

In light of a growing number of research articles on social policies being published in medical journals, this paper examines accusations that such journals are ill-equipped to referee social science research. It uses letters published in "The Lancet" between 2008 and 2012 to identify common criticisms of quantitative social science research published in this medical journal and seeks strategies to address these criticisms. It finds that the most-cited areas of dispute raised in the letters are measurement errors, omitted variables, and the implausibility and lack of external validity. The authors conclude with recommendations for strengthening the process of inquiry, debate, publication and learning.