Estimating the prevalence of missing experiments in a neuroimaging meta‐analysis

Year: 2020

Type: review

Abstract: Coordinate-based meta-analyses (CBMA) allow researchers to combine the results from multiple functional magnetic resonance imaging experiments with the goal of obtaining results that are more likely to generalize. However, the interpretation of CBMA findings can be impaired by the file drawer problem, a type of publication bias that refers to experiments that are carried out but are not published. Using foci per contrast count data from the BrainMap database, we propose a zero-truncated modeling approach that allows us to estimate the prevalence of nonsignificant experiments. We validate our method with simulations and real coordinate data generated from the Human Connectome Project. Application of our method to the data from BrainMap provides evidence for the existence of a file drawer effect, with the rate of missing experiments estimated as at least 6 per 100 reported. The R code that we used is available at https://osf.io/ayhfv/.

Source: Research Synthesis Methods

DOI: 10.1002/jrsm.1448

Authors: Pantelis Samartsidis, Silvia Montagna, Angela R. Laird, Peter T. Fox, Timothy D. Johnson, Thomas E. Nichols

Institutions: University of Cambridge, MRC Biostatistics Unit, Collegio Carlo Alberto, University of Turin, Florida International University, South Texas Veterans Health Care System, The University of Texas at San Antonio, University of Michigan, University of Warwick, University of Oxford

Language: English

Topic: Meta-analysis and systematic reviews

Subfield: Statistics, Probability and Uncertainty

Field: Decision Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $2,750

Funders: National Science Foundation, Wellcome Trust, National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit, National Institute for Health and Care Research, University of Warwick, University of Bristol, National Institutes of Health, Medical Research Council, Programme Grants for Applied Research, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering

OpenAlex ID: W3081646839