Registered reports and replications: An ongoing Journal of School Psychology initiative

Abstract

Recent psychological research suggests that many published studies cannot be replicated (e.g., Open Science Collaboration, 2015). The inability to replicate results suggests that there are influences and biases in the publication process that encourage publication of unusual—rather than representative—results, and that also discourage independent replication of published studies. A brief discussion of the ways in which publication bias and professional incentives may distort the research literature in school psychology is contrasted against the importance of replications and preregistration of research (i.e., registered reports) as self-correcting mechanisms for research in school psychology. The limitations of current practices, coupled with the importance of registered reports and replications as self-correcting mechanisms, provide the context for this ongoing initiative in the Journal of School Psychology. Processes for manuscript submission, review, and publication are presented to encourage researchers to preregister studies and submit replications for publication.