Expectation Bias

Expectation bias occurs when a study team member’s expectations about the outcome, influences the results or interpretation of the study.

In clinical trials, expectation bias can affect both researchers and participants and shape how observations are experienced, measured and reported. This bias can lead to unintentionally distorted and skewed results. Expectation bias is especially common in studies lacking blinding or objective outcome measures.

Learn how expectation bias shows up in research and why it matters in our blog post, "Understanding Expectation Bias in Clinical Trials."