How much old battleship design mattered at Pearl Harbor

How much did the age of the American battleship designs contribute to Japanese success at Pearl Harbor?

It mattered, but less than some American officers claimed and more than Japanese propaganda acknowledged.

The age and assumptions of the battleship designs played a meaningful but limited role in the outcome at Pearl Harbor. The effect was greater than Japanese propaganda would admit but smaller than some American officers later claimed. Neither obsolete design nor Japanese air power becomes the single explanation.