Chapter 14: Research Synthesis (Meta-Analysis) SFM 651: Research Methods Dr. Johnson

Say what???? An analysis of current research, as a paper by itself. Look at whats already done and analyze that Stand alone paper Does analyze and come to conclusions of its own

Problems How good was the research search Computer AND paper What were the search parameter's What was included and why How were conclusions drawn.

Steps Identify a problem Perform search Review studies Read and evaluate Calculate effect size Apply statistics Report steps and outcomes

Purpose To solve a problem Solving a problem in the literature Same as any research Solving a problem in the literature Answering an unanswered question

Examples Pg 267-269 Take a look at one of these at home Actually look it up!

Methods Different studies have different methods How do you synthesize them Calculating means and SD can be hard when different methods are used

Issues with Meta-Analysis What to code Choosing standard deviation Calculating effect size Using effect size as estimator of treatment effects Testing homogeneity Analyzing variance Outliers Publication bias

Presenting data Charts and graphs are helpful Make it easy to see and understand