ABSTRACT
Investigators collect and analyze data after the fact, a method similar to "ex post facto" research designs. Investigators and researchers using this method work backwards, after an event has occurred and the data collected, to understand the variables that led to the event. However, researchers have recognized that this method, although providing critical insights into event causation, can lead to analytical inaccuracy. Because data are gathered after the fact, researchers and investigators can select from and apply a favored explanation to account for the obtained results, rather than be compelled to accept the explanation that the data offer from experimental design techniques developed before the fact (e.g., Kerlinger, 1973).
