The DOI matches its Crossref record; 303 of the 303 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Using Dissertations to Examine Potential Bias in Child and Adolescent Clinical Trials.
Abstract
The major youth psychotherapy meta-analyses have relied on published studies, which may have led to biased effect size estimates. To examine this possibility, the authors compared 121 dissertations with 134 published studies and found the following: (a) few differences on individual methodological variables, but, overall, stronger methodology in dissertations; (b) no differences in the steps taken to ensure treatment integrity; and (c) a mean dissertation effect size less than half that of published studies. The effect size difference remained robust across tests controlling for all reliable method differences. The findings suggest that dissertations are so strong, both methodologically and clinically, that they warrant inclusion in child psychotherapy meta-analyses and that previous meta-analyses, by excluding them, may have overestimated treatment effects.
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“Although unpublished studies, such as dissertations, have not gone through the formal peer-review process, unpublished and published research have been found to be of similar quality (McLeod and Weisz 2004; Hopewell et al. 2007; Moyer et al. 2010).”
From Effects of after-school programs with at-risk youth on attendance and externalizing behaviors: A systematic review and meta-analysis (2015) · cites this paper as McLeod and Weisz 2004
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Metadata
- Authors
- McLeod, B. D., & Weisz, J. R.
- Affiliations
- University of California, Los Angeles (US)
- Venue
- Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology
- Published
- 2004
- Volume
- 72
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 235-251
- ISSN
- 0022-006X (ISSN-L)
- 1939-2117
- OpenAlex
- W2113339390
- Cited by
- 125
- References
- 291
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 1 · 2024: 9 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 7 · 2021: 9 · 2020: 4 · 2019: 6 · 2018: 7 · 2017: 2 · 2016: 5 · 2015: 5 · 2014: 6 · 2013: 14 · 2012: 4
- FWCI
- 1.27
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institutes of Health (5k05mh001161-05, 5r01mh049522-06)
- National Institute of Mental Health (R01 MH 49522, F31MH064993, K05-MH01161, F31-MH64993-01)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Decision Sciences › Statistics, Probability and Uncertainty › Meta-analysis and systematic reviews
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychotherapy Techniques and Applications
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Psychology Research and Bibliometrics
- Keywords
- dissertations, child psychotherapy, adolescent psychotherapy, clinical trials, publication bias, effect size overestimation, meta-analysis, implementation fidelity, methodological quality, unpublished research
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Child, Clinical Trials as Topic, Academic Dissertations as Topic, Humans, Bias
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