How to Get Kids to Do Chores: Does the Maya Method Work?

Seems like a classic "meaningless anecdote" type article. I understand why they are written this way, but it irritates me: "Let's address a common issue which mysteriously, science has not managed to solve by applying some science!" immediately followed up by "Here's a completely unscientific observation that I will imply you should interpret as some sort of evidence".

I can't help but think that such writing does more harm than good in that it probably convinces a lot of lay people that this is how scientists operate, resulting in them having little to no faith that science itself is a rigorous discipline.

I generally agree with your sentiment. But To be fair, the linked article about the scientific part of the supermom actually takes a very critical look at the scientific studies.

Also applying the principle of charity [1], you could think of it this way: the author looked at some studies, did a field trip. Now she tries an experiment at home and reports on it. She does not claim to present any rigorous scientific findings.

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[1] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Principle_of_charity