Characteristics of Meta-Analyses Reported in Mental Retardation, Learning Disabilities, and Emotional and Behavioral Disorders

Abstract

Face validity of meta-analyses is important given the summative nature of the technique and special education's increasing reliance on their apparently definitive results. However, reported meta-analytic information is often incomplete, thereby significantly influencing judgment of meta-analytic face validity and any subsequent conclusions for theory and practice. Twenty-four meta-analyses in mental retardation, learning disabilities, and emotional behavior disorders were reviewed and analyzed across 6 domains of information necessary for securing face validity of published meta-analyses. Results indicate a wide variation in the amount of reported data similar to Mostert (1996), which could influence the summative results of meta-analyses. In addition, temporal analysis of 44 meta-analyses in special education indicates increasingly higher proportions of information appearing in later than earlier meta-analyses.