The false positive calculator works out false positive rate, false positive and true negative from prevalence and specificity. Enter what you have and the relationship is applied straight away, so you get the answer without working through the algebra yourself.
What Is the False Positive Calculator?
The false positive calculator turns a set of measurements into false positive rate, false positive and true negative, with the uncertainty made explicit rather than left implied.
Statistics is easy to quote badly. A figure without its spread tells the reader far less than they assume it does, and this calculator puts both together.
How the False Positive Is Calculated
The calculation uses the standard relationship for this kind of estimate, applied to the figures you supply. The intermediate steps are exposed so you can see how much of the answer comes from each one.
Sample size matters more than most people expect. Doubling the number of observations improves the precision by a factor of about one and a half, not two.
What the Result Does and Does Not Tell You
A result describes the data you gave it. It does not tell you whether the sample was representative, whether the method was appropriate, or whether there is a confound in the way the figures were collected.
Report the result together with its uncertainty. A number on its own is much easier to misread than a number with a range attached.
A Worked Example
Working through an example, with prevalence set to 10, specificity set to 5, the calculator returns false positive of 36, and true negative of -45, and false positive rate of -4. Substitute your own figures and the same steps produce the same kind of answer.
Frequently Asked Questions
What do I need to work out false positive rate?
Enter prevalence and specificity. The calculator then works through the relationship and reports false positive rate, false positive and true negative.
What does the false positive actually calculate?
It takes prevalence and specificity and converts them into false positive rate, false positive and true negative using the standard relationship for this problem. Each step is applied in turn, so every output is traceable back to the numbers you typed in.
How should I enter prevalence?
Use the value you actually have, in the unit shown next to the field. Enter every value in the same unit system. The calculator assumes the figures you supply are consistent, so it cannot correct a mistake that happens before the calculation starts.
Do I have to fill in every field?
Only the fields a particular result depends on. If you leave one blank, the results that need it simply show a note instead of a number, and everything else still works.
Is the answer exact?
It is as exact as the formula and the inputs allow. The method itself is the standard one for this problem, so the only sources of error are the figures you enter and the precision you ask for.