Table 1 The different levels of study replication in relation to establishing validity and generality
Replication level | Testing validity | Scope of generality |
|---|---|---|
Exact (close) replication | Excellent | Narrowly defined biological phenomenon limited to a population, strain, or locality |
Partial replication | Good | Fairly narrowly defined biological phenomenon mostly limited to a population, strain, or locality |
Conceptual replication | Poor | Species- or system-specific phenomenon, broadly defined |
Quasi-replication (partial) | Poor | Narrowly defined biological phenomenon across species or system |
Quasi-replication (conceptual) | Poor | Broadly defined biological phenomenon across species or systems |