Methodological advances for meta-analyses and state-of-the-art research syntheses in psychology
The seventh volume of Hotspots in Psychology features research on methodological advances in
meta-analyses of psychological applications and highlights research syntheses that have a
special relevance to the field. Methodological contributions explore new approaches of interest
within the field of psychology on how to treat potential measurement errors in MASEM and how to
apply the metaplot - a new descriptive visual tool as an alternative to the often-criticized
funnel plot. Other contributions explore hotly debated topics or areas that have generated high
levels of research activity including a meta-analysis on the effects of meditation
interventions. Furthermore an application with large-scale panel data in educational research
examines the commitment of students to their study program and study success over time. Using
exceptional model mining the study demonstrates a new framework to model structural
heterogeneity. A systematic review on screening automation tools introduces existing screening
tools and reviews evidence on their performance. The results provide guidance on how to reduce
the screening workload when doing a systematic review.
