DTM.7:4.4 - Compare a causal change with a serious alternative

Choose a feasible comparison that changes the suspected relation while preserving enough of the work to interpret the result. Examples include checking the work result independently of the familiar description or testing whether recommendations still differ when subject performance is comparable.

Observe the activity in conditions where the signal actually governs support, and check the work result independently. If a separate test removes the relevant incentive or opportunity, good performance there does not by itself establish that the ordinary support relation is sound. Retain that difference in the comparison instead of inferring a permanent disposition of the agent.

The comparison must not assume the distinction it is meant to establish. If the only reason a method is labeled unreliable is that it is unfamiliar, filtering that label cannot validate the diagnosis.

Consider an alternative such as unequal resources, unsuitable tasks, changed operating conditions or a conflict over the intended objective. Use MMP.16 and the subject research method to distinguish it. A single sequence of events can locate a hypothesis without confirming its cause.