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- Title
Dealing with the positive publication bias: Why you should really publish your negative results.
- Authors
Mlinarić, Ana; Horvat, Martina; Smolčić, Vesna Šupak
- Abstract
Studies with positive results are greatly more represented in literature than studies with negative results, producing so-called publication bias. This review aims to discuss occurring problems around negative results and to emphasize the importance of reporting negative results. Underreporting of negative results introduces bias into meta-analysis, which consequently misinforms researchers, doctors and policymakers. More resources are potentially wasted on already disputed research that remains unpublished and therefore unavailable to the scientific community. Ethical obligations need to be considered when reporting results of studies on human subjects as people have exposed themselves to risk with the assurance that the study is performed to benefit others. Some studies disprove the common conception that journal editors preferably publish positive findings, which are considered as more citable. Therefore, all stakeholders, but especially researchers, need to be conscious of disseminating negative and positive findings alike.
- Subjects
PUBLICATION bias; MEDICAL periodicals; META-analysis; PERIODICAL editors; SCHOLARLY method ethics
- Publication
Biochemia Medica, 2017, Vol 27, Issue 3, p447
- ISSN
1330-0962
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.11613/BM.2017.030201