Going beyond the narrative summarization of research findings: The meta‐analysis approach

Abstract Meta‐analysis, a method for summarizing empirical studies, has been advocated in many areas of behavioral research. Expanding on existing literature, this article provides an overview of meta‐analysis with particular emphasis on its strengths and limitations. Overall, the quantitative approaches employed in meta‐analysis offer many advantages as a literature review procedure. Even if meta‐analysis is not adopted as the literature review method, awareness of the issues it raises can improve the traditional narrative summarization approach.