- Tytuł:
- Harnessing meta-analyses’ insights in ecology and evolution research
- Autorzy:
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Mizuno, Ayumi
Pollo, Pietro
Morrison, Kyle
Tam, Jesse
Williams, Coralie
Martinig, April Robin
Ricolfi, Lorenzo
Nakagawa, Shinichi
Pottier, Patrice
Yang, Yefeng
Drobniak, Szymon
Lagisz, Malgorzata - Opis:
- Meta-analyses are powerful tools to synthesize the literature in several fields of study, including ecology and evolution. However, it remains uncertain whether ecologists and evolutionary biologists fully comprehend meta-analyses’ findings or effectively apply them when citing these studies in their own research. Here, we first discuss key meta-analytical concepts and provide a guide to researchers in ecology and evolution on how to harness meta-analyses’ insights. For instance, we clarify the meaning of effect sizes and heterogeneity to improve understanding of meta-analyses’ quantitative findings. In addition, we analysed articles published in 2023 in ecology and evolution to investigate how frequently and in what context meta-analyses were cited. We found that approximately 21% of articles cited at least one meta-analysis, and that the relative number of citations of meta-analyses (0.62% of all citations analysed) was greater than the publication frequency of meta-analytical articles (0.44% of all articles). Most importantly, we found that while the direction of mean effect sizes from cited meta-analyses was often mentioned, the magnitude of effect sizes and the limitations of the data analysed were frequently overlooked. These findings underscore the need for improved citation practices of meta-analyses in ecological and evolutionary research, which our recommendations seek to promote.
- Dostawca treści:
- Repozytorium Uniwersytetu Jagiellońskiego
Artykuł