Benefits of publishing power analysis reports
I propose that a lack of opportunities for publishing "power analysis reports" may be a gap worth addressing in scientific publishing. Scientific journals offering a "power analysis report" article type could have a number of benefits:
1 - It would provide a suitable outlet for well-conducted power analyses (that often require a large investment of time and expertise) that have led to required sample sizes not feasible for the authors to achieve on their own, that may otherwise never be made public. Research waste could be reduced as power analysis reports could
inform other researchers and research funders on appropriate sample sizes and could stimulate large collaborations.
2 - It may provide incentive to avoid "power analysis hacking" to reach a desirable sample size, both acutely (the well conducted power analysis can be published if the study cannot be conducted) and chronically (increased awareness and the number of published, high quality power analysis reports within the field may reduce the ease of publishing studies with a poorly or nefariously conducted power analysis).
3 - It would draw more attention to the value of well-conducted power analysis within the field of the journal.
4 (overlapping with 1-3) - It would provide researchers on temporary contracts certain reassurance in knowing that time invested in a well-conducted power analysis could result in a publication of scientific merit on its own.
Self-publishing power analysis reports could, and perhaps should, already be done, but this potentially lacks visibility that an article type at a journal would provide within the relevant field.
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