The Only Thing That Can Stop Bad Causal Inference Is Good Causal Inference

In psychology, causal inference—both the transport from lab estimates to the real world and estimation on the basis of observational data—is often pursued in a casual manner. Underlying assumptions remain unarticulated; potential pitfalls are compiled in post-hoc lists of flaws. The field should move on to coherent frameworks of causal inference and generalizability that have been developed elsewhere.