Abstract
This chapter describes the fundamental elements of meta-analysis, with particular emphasis on its relevance to prevention science. The goal is to provide readers with a basic understanding of what a meta-analysis is, how to identify meta-analysis topics appropriate to prevention science, how to interpret results from meta-analysis, and how to identify some of the potential biases in meta-analysis; in short, our goal is to create intelligent consumers of meta-analysis. Armed with knowledge about some of the common ways that meta-analytic techniques can be used in prevention science research, we encourage readers interested in conducting a meta-analysis to seek more comprehensive resources on the statistical methods unique to this form of research (e.g., Borenstein, Hedges, Higgins, & Rothstein, 2009; Cooper, Hedges, & Valentine, 2009; Lipsey & Wilson, 2001).
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Wilson, S.J., Tanner-Smith, E.E. (2014). Meta-analysis in Prevention Science. In: Sloboda, Z., Petras, H. (eds) Defining Prevention Science. Advances in Prevention Science. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-7424-2_19
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