Meta-analysis Flashcards
What is a meta-analysis?
Compilation of multiple secondary sources of previous resources to establish a new, combined conclusion
Aim of meta-analysis
To find patterns in studies that are comparable for similar methods to guide the field of research
When are meta-analyses often conducted?
When there is a large pool of research to draw one conclusion from
When research may be inconsistent due to being from different cultures, time periods or locations
What do they focus on that is different to other psychological research?
The direction and size of the effects across studies, not the statistical difference
What is a requirement of a meta-analysis?
Should only contain studies that have sound methodology so that the best evidence is pulled together into an overall analysis, called the “best evidence synthesis”
List 2 examples of what meta-analysis has given useful insight into
1) The effectiveness of interventions, such as interventions for criminals
2) The impact of independent variables, such as which factors of JDM are most influential
Identify the main idea why meta-analyses are used in criminal psychology
To assess the success rates of treatments for offenders
Generalisability
HIGH - Gather a large sample of many studies of differing cultures, time periods and locations = representative
Reliability
HIGH - Involve study of quantitative date such as crime stats eg. recidivism when looking at treatments = objective, increasing consistency
LOW - Parts of procedures of each study that will differ from the rest of the sample = direct comparisons can’t be made as easily
Applications
YES - Often used to look at success rates of treatments and highlights issues with JDM = research can be used to help show the effectiveness and possibly lead to improvements
Validity
LOW - Involves looking at secondary data - may be elements of subjectivity = unscientific and may be influenced by researcher bias
LOW - Only uses published data and ignored unpublished data so researchers may be selective in which data they choose = publication bias which could distort findings
Ethics
SOUND - Pre-published research so doesn’t directly involve use of participants = ethical guidelines don’t need to be considered to avoid harm of participants or their informed consent which may have caused other problems in research
