The emerging disenchantment with retrospective meta-analysis
Caroline Watt
Nature Human Behaviour, Published online: 01 May 2026; doi:10.1038/s41562-026-02463-y A retrospective meta-analysis is a post hoc methodology with substantial probability of bias and is appropriately viewed as exploratory. Well-powered confirmatory studies, prospective meta-analysis and best-evidence synthesis are alternative approaches that emphasize confirmatory research and can provide more reliable evidence.