Which statement describes publication bias?

Which statement describes publication bias?

• A. Selection bias in participant recruitment
• B. Publication bias refers to the tendency to publish only significant or positive results
• C. Publication bias occurs when results are published regardless of significance
• D. Publication bias is the same as recall bias

Answer: (B)

Publication bias is the tendency for studies with statistically significant or positive findings to be published more often than studies with non-significant or negative findings. This selective publication changes the visible body of evidence, so what researchers can access and synthesize is not a complete picture of all research conducted. As a result, meta-analyses and reviews can overestimate effects or associations because the non-significant results are underrepresented or missing entirely. This isn’t about how study participants are chosen (that would be selection bias in recruitment) and it isn’t about publishing everything regardless of significance (that would reduce bias, not cause it). It also isn’t about mistakes in memory recall (recall bias). The bias specifically relates to the publication process and the tendency to favor reporting positive results.

Publication bias is the tendency for studies with statistically significant or positive findings to be published more often than studies with non-significant or negative findings. This selective publication changes the visible body of evidence, so what researchers can access and synthesize is not a complete picture of all research conducted. As a result, meta-analyses and reviews can overestimate effects or associations because the non-significant results are underrepresented or missing entirely.

This isn’t about how study participants are chosen (that would be selection bias in recruitment) and it isn’t about publishing everything regardless of significance (that would reduce bias, not cause it). It also isn’t about mistakes in memory recall (recall bias). The bias specifically relates to the publication process and the tendency to favor reporting positive results.