Abstract

Weakliem agrees that Bayes factors are useful for model selection and hypothesis testing. He reminds us that the simple and convenient BIC approximation corresponds most closely to one particular prior on the parameter space, the unit information prior, and points out that researchers may have different prior information or opinions. Clearly a prior that represents the available information should be used, although the unit information prior often seems reasonable in the absence of strong prior information. It seems that, among the Bayes factors likely to be used in practice, BIC is conservative in the sense of tending to provide less evidence for additional parameters or "effects". Thus if a Bayes factor based on additional prior information favors an effect, but BIC does not, the prior information is playing a crucial role and this should be made clear when the research is reported. BIC may well have a role as a baseline reference analysis to be provided in routine reporting of research results, perhaps along with Bayes factors based on other priors. In Weakliem's 2 x 2 table examples, BIC and Bayes factors based on Weakliem's preferred priors lead to similar substantive conclusions, but both differ from those based on P values. When there is additional prior information, the technology now exists to express it as

Citations