Abstract
Background: When the nature and direction of research results affect their chances of publication, a distortion of the evidence base-termed publication bias-results. Despite considerable recent efforts to implement measures to reduce the non-publication of trials, publication bias is still a major problem in medical research. The objective of our study was to identify barriers to and facilitators of interventions to prevent or reduce publication bias. Methods: We systematically reviewed the scholarly literature and extracted data from articles. Further, we performed semi-structured interviews with stakeholders. We performed an inductive thematic analysis to identify barriers to and facilitators of interventions to counter publication bias. Results: The systematic review identified 39 articles. Thirty-four of 89 invited interview partners agreed to be interviewed. We clustered interventions into four categories: prospective trial registration, incentives for reporting in peer-reviewed journals or research reports, public availability of individual patient-level data, and peer-review/editorial processes. Barriers we identified included economic and personal interests, lack of financial resources for a global comprehensive trial registry, and different legal systems. Facilitators identified included: raising awareness of the effects of publication bias, providing incentives to make data publically available, and implementing laws to enforce prospective registration and reporting of clinical trial results. Conclusions: Publication bias is a complex problem that reflects the complex system in which it occurs. The cooperation amongst stakeholders to increase public awareness of the problem, better tailoring of incentives to publish, and ultimately legislative regulations have the greatest potential for reducing publication bias.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Article number | 551 |
| Journal | BMC Health Services Research |
| Volume | 14 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jan 1 2014 |
| Externally published | Yes |
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Keywords
- Access to information
- Medical errors/prevention & control
- Peer review
- Publication bias
- Randomized controlled trials as topic
- Trial registration
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Health Policy
Cite this
Barriers to and facilitators of interventions to counter publication bias : Thematic analysis of scholarly articles and stakeholder interviews. / Kien, Christina; Nußbaumer, Barbara; Thaler, Kylie J.; Griebler, Ursula; Van Noord, Megan G.; Wagner, Petra; Gartlehner, Gerald.
In: BMC Health Services Research, Vol. 14, No. 1, 551, 01.01.2014.Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Barriers to and facilitators of interventions to counter publication bias
T2 - Thematic analysis of scholarly articles and stakeholder interviews
AU - Kien, Christina
AU - Nußbaumer, Barbara
AU - Thaler, Kylie J.
AU - Griebler, Ursula
AU - Van Noord, Megan G.
AU - Wagner, Petra
AU - Gartlehner, Gerald
PY - 2014/1/1
Y1 - 2014/1/1
N2 - Background: When the nature and direction of research results affect their chances of publication, a distortion of the evidence base-termed publication bias-results. Despite considerable recent efforts to implement measures to reduce the non-publication of trials, publication bias is still a major problem in medical research. The objective of our study was to identify barriers to and facilitators of interventions to prevent or reduce publication bias. Methods: We systematically reviewed the scholarly literature and extracted data from articles. Further, we performed semi-structured interviews with stakeholders. We performed an inductive thematic analysis to identify barriers to and facilitators of interventions to counter publication bias. Results: The systematic review identified 39 articles. Thirty-four of 89 invited interview partners agreed to be interviewed. We clustered interventions into four categories: prospective trial registration, incentives for reporting in peer-reviewed journals or research reports, public availability of individual patient-level data, and peer-review/editorial processes. Barriers we identified included economic and personal interests, lack of financial resources for a global comprehensive trial registry, and different legal systems. Facilitators identified included: raising awareness of the effects of publication bias, providing incentives to make data publically available, and implementing laws to enforce prospective registration and reporting of clinical trial results. Conclusions: Publication bias is a complex problem that reflects the complex system in which it occurs. The cooperation amongst stakeholders to increase public awareness of the problem, better tailoring of incentives to publish, and ultimately legislative regulations have the greatest potential for reducing publication bias.
AB - Background: When the nature and direction of research results affect their chances of publication, a distortion of the evidence base-termed publication bias-results. Despite considerable recent efforts to implement measures to reduce the non-publication of trials, publication bias is still a major problem in medical research. The objective of our study was to identify barriers to and facilitators of interventions to prevent or reduce publication bias. Methods: We systematically reviewed the scholarly literature and extracted data from articles. Further, we performed semi-structured interviews with stakeholders. We performed an inductive thematic analysis to identify barriers to and facilitators of interventions to counter publication bias. Results: The systematic review identified 39 articles. Thirty-four of 89 invited interview partners agreed to be interviewed. We clustered interventions into four categories: prospective trial registration, incentives for reporting in peer-reviewed journals or research reports, public availability of individual patient-level data, and peer-review/editorial processes. Barriers we identified included economic and personal interests, lack of financial resources for a global comprehensive trial registry, and different legal systems. Facilitators identified included: raising awareness of the effects of publication bias, providing incentives to make data publically available, and implementing laws to enforce prospective registration and reporting of clinical trial results. Conclusions: Publication bias is a complex problem that reflects the complex system in which it occurs. The cooperation amongst stakeholders to increase public awareness of the problem, better tailoring of incentives to publish, and ultimately legislative regulations have the greatest potential for reducing publication bias.
KW - Access to information
KW - Medical errors/prevention & control
KW - Peer review
KW - Publication bias
KW - Randomized controlled trials as topic
KW - Trial registration
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84988643621&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84988643621&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1186/s12913-014-0551-z
DO - 10.1186/s12913-014-0551-z
M3 - Review article
C2 - 25719959
AN - SCOPUS:84988643621
VL - 14
JO - BMC Health Services Research
JF - BMC Health Services Research
SN - 1472-6963
IS - 1
M1 - 551
ER -