Editing Blinded experiment (section)

====Depression====

Studies have found evidence of extensive unblinding in [[antidepressant]] trials: at least three-quarters of patients were able to correctly guess their treatment assignment.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Perlis |first1=Roy H. |last2=Ostacher |first2=Michael |last3=Fava |first3=Maurizio |last4=Nierenberg |first4=Andrew A. |last5=Sachs |first5=Gary S. |last6=Rosenbaum |first6=Jerrold F. |title=Assuring that double-blind is blind |journal=The American Journal of Psychiatry |date=2010 |volume=167 |issue=3 |pages=250–252 |doi=10.1176/appi.ajp.2009.09060820 |pmid=20194487 |s2cid=207628021 |issn=1535-7228}}</ref> Unblinding also occurs in clinicians.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=White |first1=K. |last2=Kando |first2=J. |last3=Park |first3=T. |last4=Waternaux |first4=C. |last5=Brown |first5=W. A. |title=Side effects and the "blindability" of clinical drug trials |journal=The American Journal of Psychiatry |date=December 1992 |volume=149 |issue=12 |pages=1730–1731 |doi=10.1176/ajp.149.12.1730 |pmid=1443253 |issn=0002-953X}}</ref> Better blinding of patients and clinicians reduces [[effect size]]. Researchers concluded that unblinding inflates effect size in antidepressant trials.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Moncrieff |first1=Joanna |last2=Wessely |first2=Simon |last3=Hardy |first3=Rebecca |title=Meta-analysis of trials comparing antidepressants with active placebos |journal=British Journal of Psychiatry |date=2 January 2018 |volume=172 |issue=3 |pages=227–231 |doi=10.1192/bjp.172.3.227 |pmid=9614471 |s2cid=4975797 |issn=0007-1250}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Greenberg |first1=RP |last2=Bornstein |first2=RF |last3=Greenberg |first3=MD |last4=Fisher |first4=S |title=A meta-analysis of antidepressant outcome under "blinder" conditions. |journal=Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology |date=October 1992 |volume=60 |issue=5 |pages=664–9; discussion 670–7 |doi=10.1037/0022-006X.60.5.664 |pmid=1401382 |issn=0022-006X}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Moncrieff |first1=J |last2=Wessely |first2=S |last3=Hardy |first3=R |title=Active placebos versus antidepressants for depression. |journal=The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews |date=2004 |volume=2012 |issue=1 |pages=CD003012 |doi=10.1002/14651858.CD003012.pub2 |pmid=14974002 |issn=1469-493X|pmc=8407353 }}</ref> Some researchers believe that antidepressants are not effective for the treatment of depression and only outperform placebos due to [[observational error|systematic error]]. These researchers argue that antidepressants are just [[active placebo]]s.<ref name=Ioannidis2008>{{cite journal |last1=Ioannidis |first1=JP |title=Effectiveness of antidepressants: an evidence myth constructed from a thousand randomized trials? |journal=Philosophy, Ethics, and Humanities in Medicine |date=27 May 2008 |volume=3 |pages=14 |doi=10.1186/1747-5341-3-14 |pmid=18505564 |pmc=2412901 |issn=1747-5341 |doi-access=free }}</ref><ref name=Kirsch2014>{{cite journal |last1=Kirsch |first1=Irving |title=Antidepressants and the Placebo Effect |journal=Zeitschrift für Psychologie |date=2014 |volume=222 |issue=3 |pages=128–134 |doi=10.1027/2151-2604/a000176 |pmid=25279271 |pmc=4172306 |issn=2190-8370}}</ref>