Weasel Wording in Statistics

A statistical weasel attempts to not overstate the results of a statistical analysis. For example, it's the reason my recent post stated there is a 1/7th risk of a detected infection amongst the vaccinated. This is very different than claiming there is 1/7th risk of an infection amongst the vaccinated. It is also important to identify the data source and the data timing when effects are likely dynamic rather than static. A key analysis component is grasping the fundamental limitations of what the provided data can tell. An interesting statistics related quote is "If you torture the data long enough, it will confess". This quote requires an important addition. "Make sure you are torturing data that can confess." Appropriate weasel wording helps to narrow the scope of the result. We like broad sweeping conclusions, but often they are generalizations that the data does not fully support.