Meta-analysis challenges a textbook example of status signalling: evidence for publication bias

Sánchez‐Tójar, Alfredo; Nakagawa, Shinichi; Sánchez-Fortún, Moisés; Da, Martin; Ramani, Sukanya; Girndt, Antje; Bókony,; Kempenaers, Bart; Liker, András; Df, Westneat; Burke, Terry; Schroeder, Julia

doi:10.1101/283150

Cited by 6 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 105 publications

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“…According to our survey (Figure 2), fewer than 5% of meta-analyses in ecology and evolution tested for this type of publication bias. This is concerning, as time-lag bias is likely to be prevalent in ecology and evolution (Jennions & Moller, 2002;Sanchez-Tojar et al, 2018). To test for time-lag bias, we caution against using correlation-based methods, because this approach does not account for different precisions of effect sizes (e.g., quantifying a rank correlation between effect size and publication year; Barto & Rillig, 2012).…”

Section: Time-lag Bias Testsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Methods for testing publication bias in ecological and evolutionary meta‐analyses

et al. 2021

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1. Publication bias threatens the validity of quantitative evidence from meta-analyses as it results in some findings being overrepresented in meta-analytic datasets because they are published more frequently or sooner (e.g., 'positive' results). Unfortunately, methods to test for the presence of publication bias, or assess its impact on meta-analytic results, are unsuitable for datasets with high heterogeneity and non-independence, as is common in ecology and evolutionary biology.2. We first review both classic and emerging publication bias tests (e.g., funnel plots, Egger's regression, cumulative meta-analysis, fail-safe N, trim-and-fill tests, p-curve and selection models), showing that some tests cannot handle heterogeneity, and, more importantly, none of the methods can deal with non-independence. For each method we estimate current usage in ecology and evolutionary biology, based on a representative sample of 102 meta-analyses published in the last ten years.3. Then, we propose a new method using multilevel meta-regression, which can model both heterogeneity and non-independence, by extending existing regression-based methods (i.e.Egger's regression). We describe how our multilevel meta-regression can test not only publication bias, but also time-lag bias, and how it can be supplemented by residual funnel plots.4. Overall, we provide ecologists and evolutionary biologists with practical recommendations on which methods are appropriate to employ given independent and non-independent effect sizes.No method is ideal, and more simulation studies are required to understand how Type 1 and 2 error rates are impacted by complex data structures. Still, limitations of these methods do not justify ignoring publication bias in ecological and evolutionary meta-analyses.

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Section: Time-lag Bias Testsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Methods for testing publication bias in ecological and evolutionary meta‐analyses

et al. 2021

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“…The island is rodent-free and therefore the sparrows have no predators but for the occasional vagrant raptor. House sparrows are a model organism in behavioral ecology and evolution, and much is known about their biology, physiology and life-history (Andersson 1994;Sánchez-Tójar et al 2018). House sparrow are socially monogamous, but 25% of broods show they can be genetically promiscuous (Schroeder et al 2016).…”

Section: Study Systemmentioning

confidence: 99%

Opposite-sex associations are linked with annual fitness, but sociality is stable over lifetime

Dunning

Burke

Chan

et al. 2022

Preprint

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Animal sociality, an individuals propensity to association with others, has consequences for fitness, and particularly mate choice. For example, directly, by increasing the pool of prospective partners, and indirectly through increased survival. Individuals benefit from both over the short-term as these benefits are associated with mating status and subsequent fecundity, but whether animal sociality also translates into fitness is unknown. Here, we quantified social associations and their link with annual and lifetime fitness, measured as the number of recruits and in de-lifed fitness. We measured this in birds visiting a feeding station over two non-breeding periods, using social network analysis and a multi-generational genetic pedigree. We find high individual repeatability in sociality. We found that individuals with an average sociality had the highest fitness, and that birds with more opposite-sex associates had higher fitness, but this did not translate to improved lifetime fitness. For lifetime fitness, we found evidence for stabilizing selection on between sex sociality measures, suggesting that such benefits are only short-lived in a wild population.

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“…Indeed, recent studies show that the inclusion of grey literature can significantly change the conclusions of a meta-analysis (e.g. Sánchez-Tójar et al, 2018). Although grey literature can be found in major platforms such as Web of Science, or subject-specific databases, in the form of meeting abstracts, conference proceedings or theses, it is usually more fruitful to source them from dedicated resources.…”

Section: Grey Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

A practical guide to question formation, systematic searching and study screening for literature reviews in ecology and evolution

et al. 2021

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1. Well-conducted systematic reviews are invaluable for synthesising research findings. The conclusions of a review depend on how the research question was formulated, how relevant studies were found and how studies were selected for synthesis.2. Here, we present a practical guide for ecologists and evolutionary biologists on formulating a question for a systematic review, and finding a representative sample of research findings.3. We explain the steps involved using a worked example and practical training exercises. Throughout this guide we share tricks of the trade, included rules of thumb and software that we have found useful.4. We hope our paper helps demystify the systematic search process and encourages more researchers to adopt a systematic and reproducible approach when searching the literature.

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Meta-analysis challenges a textbook example of status signalling: evidence for publication bias

Cited by 6 publications

References 105 publications

Methods for testing publication bias in ecological and evolutionary meta‐analyses

Methods for testing publication bias in ecological and evolutionary meta‐analyses

Opposite-sex associations are linked with annual fitness, but sociality is stable over lifetime

A practical guide to question formation, systematic searching and study screening for literature reviews in ecology and evolution

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