Current research practices often conflate theoretical constructs and explanatory hypotheses with variables and predicted effects, to the detriment of research progress. This has led to the use of procedures such as manipulation checks, mediation analysis, and boundary conditions predicated on the idea that matching constructs to variables is necessary to validate that a theory corresponds to an effect . An alternative perspective, Inference to the Best Explanation (IBE), calls for designing research to exploit the power of distinguishing constructs from variables, hypotheses from predictions, and theory from effects. IBE calls for stating hypotheses (Hs) about construct‐to‐construct relationships and, separately, the predictions (Ps) about variable‐to‐variable effects that are explained by the hypotheses. In addition, articles should include disparate effects, a single explanation covering all studies, and a discussion of the use of the research in specific problem contexts. The application of IBE is illustrated with research investigating when judgments are based on a feeling about the ease of information retrieval versus the information content itself.

中文翻译：

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在设计研究中从变量中区分构造

当前的研究实践常常将理论构造和解释性假设与变量和预期效果混淆在一起，从而损害了研究进展。这就导致了诸如操纵检查，中介分析和边界条件之类的程序的使用，其前提是构想必须与变量匹配才能验证理论与效果相对应。另一种观点是对最佳解释的推论（IBE），它要求进行设计研究，以利用将结构与变量区分开来，将假设与预测区分开来以及将理论与效果区分开来的能力。IBE要求陈述关于构造与构造之间关系的假设（Hs），并分别陈述有关假设所解释的变量对变量影响的预测（Ps）。此外，文章应包括不同的影响，涵盖所有研究的单一解释以及在特定问题背景下对研究的使用的讨论。研究调查说明了IBE的应用，该研究调查了何时基于对信息检索的简便性相对于信息内容本身的判断来进行判断。