Pre-registration and Registered Reports in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology: An Evidence-Based Appraisal by SORTEE

1. A pre-registration is a time-stamped, read-only research plan that is written prior to data collection and analysis. This practice aims to increase transparency and reduce questionable research practices (QRPs) such as p-hacking and HARKing. Registered Reports are an article format with two stage peer review, that integrates Pre-registration and peer review and aims to additionally reduce research waste and publication bias. 2. Cross-disciplinary evidence for the benefits of Pre-registration in terms of reducing QRPs is mixed; deviations from pre-registered plans often happen and are not disclosed, reducing their value in reducing QRPs. 3. There is much clearer evidence for Registered Reports reducing QRPs and publication bias, as well as increasing the quality of published articles. 4. There is no specific research on Pre-registration and Registered Reports in ecology and evolution, and uptake of the practices is currently very low.