There are steps in properly performed meta-analysis that are very much about verification of a field of research as a whole, rather than a single study. For exa

There are steps in properly performed meta-analysis that are very much about verification of a field of research as a whole, rather than a single study. For example, methods to detect likely publication bias, or heterogenity statistics that will indicate whether or not a given literature is in a state to be pooled at all. Both are methods to reveal "Something is wrong here..."