SMU Libraries support the conduct of:
- Literature surveys and review articles (Business & Management, Economics, Psychology and more)
- Systematic reviews and meta-analyses, scoping reviews, systematic mapping reviews, rapid reviews and other systematic or structured approaches to literature reviews.
- Bibliometric reviews using tools such as VOSviewer, Bibliometrix and CiteSpace
How can Librarians help?
Librarians are trained in supporting the process of reviews, systematic reviews and other evidence synthesis methods custom-made for specific or multidisciplinary disciplines. They can:
- Provide guidance on the use of specific methodologies and conducting standards (e.g. Cochrane Collaboration, Campbell Collaboration, Collaboration for Environmental Evidence etc)
- Recommend databases and other sources for specific disciplines*
- Design and implement comprehensive and reproducible search strategies (including specific filters by journal titles) for multiple databases*
- Provide guidance on efficient bulk extraction and deduplication of search records found
- Recommend and assist in the use of other software to aid with the literature review process including:
- Covidence (Whole systematic review process)
- ASreview (Semi-automated screening)
- Zotero (Deduplication)
- Various tools for citation chasing and other supplementary search methods
- Assist with best practices for reporting and documentation (e.g., PRISMA 2020 reporting standards)
Our assistance can be sought on two levels:
- Research consultant
- Collaborator or co-author
As a research consultant, we offer the following:
- Guidance on the background and basics of evidence synthesis for newcomers
- Guidance of databases and other sources to use*
- Recommendations for tools for all steps of the process including data extraction, deduplication, screening and reporting
- Review of search strategies
- Discuss Critical Appraisal tools
An acknowledgement in the work of support from the SMU Librarian is expected.
As a coauthor or collaborator, we can extend additional services including:
- Assist with question refinement and search strategy testing and formulation
- Jointly run database searches and extract data*
- Jointly support the deduplication process and run the screening process
- Write the search and retrieval portion of the methods section of the paper
* Jointly with support from a librarian with subject expertise.
Contact Us
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