A Simple, Principled Approach to Combining Evidence From Meta-Analysis and High-Quality Replications:

Recent discussions of the influence of publication bias and questionable research practices on psychological science have increased researchers’ interest in both bias-correcting meta-analytic techniques and preregistered replication. Both approaches have their strengths: For example, meta-analyses can quantitatively characterize the full body of work done in the field of interest, and preregistered replications can be immune to bias. Both approaches also have clear weaknesses: Decisions about which meta-analytic estimates to interpret tend to be controversial, and replications can be discounted for failing to address important methodological heterogeneity. Using the experimental literature on ego depletion as a case study, we illustrate a principled approach to combining information from meta-analysis with information from subsequently conducted high-quality replications. This approach (a) compels researchers to explicate their beliefs in meta-analytic conclusions (and also, when controversy arises, to de...