What is the problem with publication bias?

In preclinical and experimental research, this bias may seriously distort the literature, drain scarce resources by undertaking research in futile quests, and lead to misguided research and teaching practices.

What is the risk of publication bias?

Specifically, the conclusions of the review may be compromised when decisions about how, when and where to report results of eligible studies are influenced by the nature and direction of the results. This is the problem of 'non-reporting bias' (also described as 'publication bias' and 'selective reporting bias').

How is publication bias an ethical issue?

Publication bias is defined as "the tendency on the parts of investigators, reviewers, and editors to submit or accept manuscripts for publication based on the direction or the strength of the study findings."Publication bias distorts the accumulated data in the literature, causes the over estimation of potential ...

What is the result of publication bias?

Publication bias typically describes the phenomenon whereby positive results which support a hypothesis are more likely to be published than negative or null results, thus some discoveries remain hidden from view.

What is the implication of publication bias if it occurs?

If publication bias is present, smaller (less precise) studies that failed to show statistical significance will be less likely to be published. This is reflected as asymmetry in the funnel plot.

Understanding Publication Bias in Research

What are some examples of publication bias?

Why is bias an issue in research?

Any such trend or deviation from the truth in data collection, analysis, interpretation and publication is called bias. Bias in research can occur either intentionally or unintentionally. Bias causes false conclusions and is potentially misleading. Therefore, it is immoral and unethical to conduct biased research.

What type of bias is publication bias?

Publication bias is a type of reporting bias and closely related to dissemination bias, although dissemination bias generally applies to all forms of results dissemination, not simply journal publications.

What is publication bias and why does it pose a problem for evidence based decision making?

Publication bias occurs when studies with statistically significant results have increased likelihood of being published. Publication bias is commonly associated with inflated treatment effect which lowers the certainty of decision makers about the evidence.

What is an example of publication bias in research?

Publication bias occurs when one type of study result is more likely to be published than another. For example, publishing results of studies that show a new treatment provides significant benefits, but not always publishing studies that show less or no benefit, will lead to publication bias.

How do you get around publication bias?

Publication bias may be reduced by journals by publishing high-quality studies regardless of novelty or unexciting results, and by publishing protocols or full-study data sets.

Is publication bias intentional?

Bias may be introduced intentionally or unintentionally, consciously or unconsciously, into the process of research dissemination. 3,18 The dissemination profile of research may be influenced by investigators, study sponsors, peer reviewers, and journal editors.

How do you check for publication bias?

Various statistical tests have been proposed for publication bias in the funnel plot, such as Begg's rank test (Begg and Mazumdar, 1994) and Egger's regression test (Egger et al., 1997) and its extensions (e.g., Macaskill et al., 2001; Rothstein et al., 2005; Harbord et al., 2006; Peters et al., 2006).

Why is bias bad in articles?

Biases can lead to false conclusions, which might be misleading or even harmful. The use of biased results to inform further research or guide policies may have damaging consequences. Biased studies are not reproducible and will affect the credibility and validity of your work.

Why is there a publication bias against no effects?

Study results with null effects indicate that the result does not support the hypothesis. Researchers often consider these types of results unexciting or a sign of failure. Journals also are more inclined to publish research with positive findings.

Does publication bias cause heterogeneity?

Our results show that the effect of publication bias on the Q test and assessment of heterogeneity is large, complex, and nonlinear. Publication bias can both dramatically decrease and increase heterogeneity in true effect size, particularly if the number of studies is large and population effect size is small.

Why is assessing publication bias important?

Publication bias is when statistically significant results are more likely to be published than non-significant ones. These results are then more likely to be identified by future researchers conducting meta-analyses and other research on that topic, and thereby included.

How do you deal with publication bias in meta-analysis?

What is publication bias also known as?

Publication bias is sometimes called the file-drawer effect, or file-drawer problem. This term suggests that results not supporting the hypotheses of researchers often go no further than the researchers' file drawers, leading to a bias in published research.

What is a publication bias quizlet?

publication bias. the tendency for published studies to systematically over-represent statistically significant findings, reflecting the tendency of researchers, reviewers, and editors to not publish negative results; also called a bias against the null hypothesis.

What is the difference between selection bias and publication bias?

Evidence selection bias occurs when a systematic review does not identify all available data on a topic. This can arise from publication bias, where data from statistically significant studies are more likely to be published than those that are not statistically significant.

Is bias bad in research?

When bias is present, study results can be skewed or wrong. It can make the study less trustworthy and valid. If bias affects how a study is set up, how data is collected, or how it is analyzed, it can cause systematic mistakes that move the results away from the true or unbiased values.

What should bias be avoided in research?

How do you avoid bias in a research paper?

What reduces publication bias?

Bias can be minimized by (1) insisting on high-quality research and thorough literature reviews, (2) eliminating the double standard concerning peer review and informed consent applied to clinical research and practice, (3) publishing legitimate trials regardless of their results, (4) requiring peer reviewers to ...