Meta-analysis
A statistical technique that combines quantitative results from multiple comparable studies to estimate an overall effect.
A meta-analysis statistically combines the numerical results of multiple studies that address the same question, producing a pooled estimate of an effect that is more precise than any single study. It usually sits on top of a systematic review: the review identifies and screens the studies, and the meta-analysis synthesizes their effect sizes, weighting larger or more precise studies more heavily. Analysts also examine heterogeneity, meaning how much results vary between studies.
For a thesis, a meta-analysis can be an ambitious but self-contained project, and even if you never run one, reading them well matters. Pooled estimates carry more weight in your literature review than individual findings, so cite them when they exist. Understand their limits too: a meta-analysis inherits the biases of the studies it combines, and combining poorly matched studies produces misleading averages.
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