The ratio–interactive-skills association may be partly or entirely attributable to small-study publication bias¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · quant-synthesis r3 · q3
Currency · newest study 2026 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q3 i? Extended Egger's regression showed significant small-study effects for the child-caregiver ratio association (p < .001); PET yielded r = .21 while PEESE was near zero and non-significant (r = −.01). → Støve 2026

Evidence¶

Støve 2026¶

Støve, L. L., Dalgaard, N. T., Mohr, J. W., Hansen, J. E., Wendelboe, K. I., Hestbaek, E., Vieira, C. C., Væver, M. S., & Smith-Nielsen, J. (2026). Individual and Structural Factors Associated with Interactive Skills of Child-Care Professionals in Early Childhood Education and Care: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Educational Psychology Review. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-026-10162-3

q3 · i? · quant-synthesis · r3

Publication-bias assessment within the three-level model: funnel plots showed no substantial asymmetry, but PET gave a small bias-adjusted effect (r = .21, p = .046) and PEESE an estimate near zero (r = −.01, p = .840); effect sizes decreased with greater study precision.

"the extended Egger's regression showed significant small-study effects for the association between child-caregiver ratio and interactive skills ( p < .001), suggesting potential publication bias."

Discussion¶

Learner Variables¶

• Proportional Reasoning — predictor: learners who differ on it differ in outcomes

Related Claims¶

• Smaller group sizes and lower child-caregiver ratios are associated with higher interactive skills of individual caregivers — related
• Caregiver mentalizing abilities and mental well-being are positively associated with interactive skills, with mentalizing sensitive to estimation method — related
• Higher caregiver education level is associated with higher interactive skills of individual child-care professionals (r = .21) — related
• Effect sizes were not moderated by publication year, age, or percentage of females, but were related to study quality; publication-bias tests gave mixed signals — related
• The pooled gamification effect is robust across dependence assumptions, quality thresholds, and model specifications, with no evidence of publication bias — related
• Publication-bias tests found no evidence of substantial publication bias in the meta-analytic sample — related
• Publication bias evidence is mixed: marginal asymmetry for tutees but no missing studies, and no bias for tutors — related
• Funnel-plot asymmetry ran contrary to small-study effects because larger-sample studies reported larger effect sizes, likely reflecting longer training programs — related
• Funnel plot asymmetry for openness, extraversion, and neuroticism appears attributable to reasons other than publication bias — related
• Publication-bias evidence differs by subset: significant funnel-plot asymmetry for course-embedded spacing studies but no strong evidence of bias for isolated-material studies. — related
• Higher caregiver salary is associated with higher interactive skills, though causality cannot be determined — related
• Interest as well as association may partly account for the correlation between accuracy in computation and reasoning — related