Complex statistical methods are continuously developed across the fields of ecology, evolution, and systematics (EES). These fields, however, lack standardized principles for evaluating methods, which has led to high variability in the rigor with which methods are tested, a lack of clarity regarding their limitations, and the potential for misapplication. In this review, we illustrate the common pitfalls of method evaluations in EES, the advantages of testing methods with simulated data, and best practices for method evaluations. We highlight the difference between method evaluation and validation and review how simulations, when appropriately designed, can refine the domain in which a method can be reliably applied. We also discuss the strengths and limitations of different evaluation metrics. The potential for misapplication of methods would be greatly reduced if funding agencies, reviewers, and journals required principled method evaluation.

中文翻译：

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进化论、生态学和系统学方法的模拟测试：陷阱、进展和原理

复杂的统计方法在生态学、进化论和系统学（EES）领域不断发展。然而，这些领域缺乏评估方法的标准化原则，这导致方法测试的严格程度存在很大差异，其局限性缺乏明确性，并且存在误用的可能性。在这篇综述中，我们阐述了 EES 中方法评估的常见陷阱、使用模拟数据测试方法的优点以及方法评估的最佳实践。我们强调方法评估和验证之间的区别，并回顾模拟在适当设计时如何细化可以可靠应用方法的领域。我们还讨论了不同评估指标的优点和局限性。如果资助机构、审稿人和期刊需要有原则的方法评估，那么误用方法的可能性就会大大减少。