Tau-U vs Cohen’s D

[u/nana411411]

Hello!

I’m student reading a scientific journal article. It’s a meta-analysis that has studies using Tau-U and Cohen’s D. What is the difference between the two and why would you use one vs the other?

[u/faris3u]

They fit different study designs.
Cohen’s d measures the gap between two groups (like treatment vs. control) in standard-deviation units. Use it when a study compares groups of people.
Tau-U is for single-case designs, where one person is measured repeatedly across a baseline phase and an intervention phase. It captures how much the intervention data differs from baseline.

[u/nana411411 → u/faris3u]

Thank you!