Title: | Neglecting the null: the pitfalls of underreporting negative results in preclinical research |
Authors: | Foster, William Putos, Samantha |
Date: | 2014-05-07 |
Abstract: | Heightened competition for funding and increased pressure
to publish in high-impact journals has led to a modern-day
publication culture that favours positive results. The underreporting
of negative, or null, results is a form of publication bias
that occurs when researchers and/or reviewers fail to communicate
findings due to unfavourable directionality or perceived
unimportance. For nearly three decades, recognition of this bias
in clinical research has led to revised policies and guidelines in
an effort to improve reporting transparency and accuracy. Only
recently has the existence of this reporting bias been fully appreciated
as a formidable problem in preclinical research. Considering
that preclinical research provides the foundation on which
many clinical trials are conceived, finding solutions to increase
the reporting accuracy of preclinical studies is of paramount importance.
In this commentary, we will explore how the underreporting
of negative results in preclinical research distorts scientific
knowledge and subsequently misguides clinical research.
We will conclude with several suggestions for reducing this bias
with the intention of transitioning towards a truly transparent
and objective publishing landscape. |
URL: | http://hdl.handle.net/10393/31044 |
Collection | Journal Médical de l'Université d'Ottawa (JMUO) // University of Ottawa Journal of Medicine (UOJM)
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