ajps-replication-and-verification

Replication & Verification (ajps-replication-and-verification)

This is AJPS's signature differentiator. Unlike journals that check reproducibility in-house (or not at

all), **AJPS sends your deposited materials to an independent third party that actually re-runs the

code and confirms it reproduces the numerical results reported in the main text** — before

publication. If it does not reproduce, the article does not publish until it does. Build the package as

you analyze (ajps-data-analysis); it cannot be improvised at acceptance.

When to trigger

• Building the replication / verification package
• A manuscript is accepted and you have received upload instructions (after final draft, during the

technical check, before copyediting)

• Data cannot be fully shared (privacy, ethics, provider restriction) and you need a path
• A qualitative or multi-method paper whose evidence needs a documented verification route

How AJPS verification actually works (official baseline checked 2026-06-20)

1. Deposit to the AJPS Dataverse. Materials go into a Dataset within the **AJPS Dataverse on the

Harvard Dataverse Network** — not a personal site or generic cloud link. Other copies may exist

elsewhere as long as everything needed is in the AJPS Dataverse Dataset.

1. Independent third-party verification. A verifier re-runs the code and confirms it reproduces the

numerical results in the main text. The published article carries a statement: *"The Cornell

Center for Social Sciences verified that the data and replication code submitted to the AJPS

Dataverse replicates the numerical results reported in the main text of this article."* MPSA also

identifies Cornell Center for Social Sciences as the contracted replication-and-verification provider.

1. Qualitative path. Qualitative / multi-method materials follow the AJPS verification guidelines

and qualitative checklist: document collection procedures, instruments, analytic operations, source

fragments or access restrictions, and any exemption route needed for human-subjects, copyright, or

legal constraints.

1. Timing. It happens **after the final draft is submitted, during the technical check, before

copyediting** — late enough that fixing an unscripted analysis under deadline is painful.

Build-as-you-go checklist (so the re-run matches)

• [ ] readme.txt lists and describes every file (group as "Data files", "Stata .do files", "Files

to Reproduce Table 1", ...)

• [ ] One master script runs the modular scripts in order and sets the working directory once
• [ ] set seed for every stochastic step (Monte Carlo, bootstrap, randomization inference, jitter)
• [ ] Explicit software-version statements (e.g., "R 4.3.2", "Stata/MP 18.0"); packages pinned
• [ ] Every main-text number, table, and figure is regenerated by the code, names matched
• [ ] Restricted data: explain why, give exact access instructions, provide synthetic data where feasible
• [ ] Sharing terms and any access restrictions documented in the Dataverse materials
• [ ] Preregistration / pre-analysis plan linked (anonymized) where applicable

When data cannot be shared

• Explain why (ethics, privacy, legal/provider restriction).
• Provide README instructions on exactly how others can obtain the data (process, application, contact).
• Where possible, provide synthetic data resembling the real data so the code can run end to end.

Anti-patterns

• Treating the deposit as a post-publication afterthought (it gates publication)
• Depositing code that does not actually regenerate the printed main-text numbers
• A personal URL instead of the AJPS Dataverse
• Unseeded, unpinned, hard-coded-path code that "works on my machine" but not on the verifier's
• Claiming data are restricted with no access path or synthetic substitute

Output format

【Repository】AJPS Dataverse (Harvard) — Dataset staged? [Y/N]
【Reproduces main-text numbers?】master script re-run locally, matches? [Y/N]
【Files】readme.txt + master script + seeds + pinned versions? [Y/N]
【Verifier】Cornell Center for Social Sciences / AJPS qualitative checklist path
【Restricted data?】why + access path + synthetic data?
【Sharing terms】Dataverse/exemption notes complete?
【Next】ajps-review-process

Supplementary resources

• [../../resources/external_tools.md](../../resources/external_tools.md) — replication-package tooling and qualitative-transparency options
• [../../resources/official-source-map.md](../../resources/official-source-map.md) — AJPS Replication & Verification Policy, verifier transition, and AJPS Dataverse