Holgado et al. 2020, mental fatigue and exercise performance: bias-sensitive meta-analysis

This systematic review and bias-sensitive meta-analysis found an uncorrected pooled effect of mental fatigue on endurance performance of d = −0.50, but after applying a three-parameter publication-bias correction this fell to approximately d = −0.08 to −0.10, becoming non-significant. The authors concluded that current evidence does not conclusively support the claim that mental fatigue impairs exercise performance, noting that the average study included only 13 participants and that funnel-plot asymmetry indicated substantial publication bias. Limited evidence; larger pre-registered multi-lab replications are needed.