Meta-analytic structural equation modeling (MASEM) is a method to systematically synthesize results from primary studies, allowing the researchers to simultaneously examine multiple relations among variables by fitting a structural equation model to the pooled correlations. Incorporating dichotomous variables (e.g., having
a specific disease or not) into MASEM poses challenges. While primary...
In a recent paper we presented a way of incorporating mean structures in meta-analytic structural equation modeling (MASEM). MASEM with means is applicable when the studies included in the meta-analysis used the same indicators, measured on the same scales. The meta-analytic data consist of the studies’covariance matrices and mean vectors. The MASEM then restricts the vector of meta-analyzed...
Reporting biases are well-known phenomena that can undermine the credibility of published scientific findings and potentially distort meta-analytic effect estimates. These biases arise when the decision to publish or report results is influenced by their nature or direction. Traditionally, methods for assessing small-study effects and evaluating the robustness of results against publication...
Moderator analyses play a crucial role in meta-analysis, as they help to identify relationships between study characteristics and the effect size magnitude. When multiple effect sizes are reported within studies, various methods can be used to perform moderator analysis or meta-regression. These include three-level models (which may or may not account for variability in moderator effects...
Moderator analysis in meta-analysis is commonly used to study whether certain study characteristics can explain the heterogeneity in effect sizes. Understanding why effect sizes vary between contexts is important for selecting the right intervention for the right context and for guiding further research. In order to rely on the results from moderator analyses, the moderator effect estimates...
Univariate meta-analysis models assume that all effect sizes included in the meta-analysis are independent. This assumption is violated if, for example, two outcomes are reported in a study that are of interest to the meta-analyst or a study reports multiple experiments administered by the same researchers in the same lab. The multivariate and multilevel meta-analysis model allow to model...
Meta-analysis is a statistical technique that combines effect sizes from independent primary studies on the same topic, and is currently seen as the “gold standard” for synthesizing and summarizing results from multiple primary studies. The main research objectives of a meta-analysis are (i) estimating the average effect, (ii) assessing the heterogeneity of true effect sizes, and if the true...
