Meanings
nounfile-drawer problem (plural file-drawer problems)
plural file-drawer problems
- The bias to meta-analysis resulting from statistical studies with low statistical power tending to remain unpublished and inaccessible to the analyst.
Origin
From the notion of statistical studies that show no significant effect tending to remain unpublished in file drawers.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
APA
file-drawer problem. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/file-drawer%20problem
MLA
“file-drawer problem.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/file-drawer%20problem. Accessed November 3, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “file-drawer problem,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/file-drawer%20problem.
Source: file-drawer problem on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.