Psychological Science Preregistration Resources

Resources for Preregistration

Preregistration allows researchers to publicly specify their hypotheses, methods, and analysis plan before collecting or analyzing their data. This practice helps establish clear goals and procedures for each study, distinguishes confirmatory from exploratory aspects of research, and promotes greater research transparency in psychology. Increasingly, journals and graduate programs recognize preregistration as an important step toward open and reproducible science, with many journals even awarding badges to highlight preregistered research.

Where to Preregister

Two widely-used, free platforms are:

How to Write a Preregistration

A preregistration should include:

  • The study title, contributors, conflicts of interest
  • Hypotheses
  • Plans for data collection (survey, secondary, etc.)
  • Planned sample size
  • Exclusion criteria
  • Data cleaning procedures
  • Planned statistical analyses
  • Any exploratory plans or secondary questions

For a more detailed guide and template: