R0002/2026-03-13/C005/H3¶
Statement¶
COI/funding is addressed elsewhere in the RoB 2 framework (e.g., through signaling questions) and is not truly absent.
Status¶
Current: Eliminated
Supporting Evidence¶
| Evidence | Summary |
|---|---|
[No evidence found supporting this hypothesis.]
Contradicting Evidence¶
| Evidence | Summary |
|---|---|
| SRC01-E01 | Five domains listed with no COI/funding component |
| SRC02-E01 | Explicitly documents that the "other bias" domain (where COI was assessed) was removed in RoB 2 |
| SRC03-E01 | Defends the absence rather than claiming COI is addressed elsewhere |
Reasoning¶
H3 was included to test whether COI might be captured through signaling questions or other mechanisms within RoB 2, even if not listed as a formal domain. The evidence is clear: COI is genuinely absent. The original RoB tool had an "other bias" domain where COI was commonly assessed (15.6% of assessments). This domain was removed in RoB 2. Even the tool's co-developer (Sterne) defends the absence rather than arguing that COI is addressed elsewhere. H3 is eliminated with high confidence.
Relationship to Other Hypotheses¶
H3 is independent of H1 and H2 (which debate the significance of the absence, not whether COI is present). H3's elimination confirms that COI is genuinely absent, strengthening the factual foundation shared by H1 and H2.