Research Guides: Writing in the Health and Social Sciences: Conducting &amp; Reporting Systematic Reviews

Guidelines & Standards

Health Sciences

JBI Manual for Evidence Synthesis
JBI (Joanna Briggs Institute) is an international evidence-based healthcare research organization. The JBI Manual for Evidence Synthesis is meant to provide authors with a comprehensive guide to conducting JBI systematic reviews. Types of systematic reviews covered in manual include: systematic reviews of qualitative evidence, systematic reviews of effectiveness, mixed methods systematics reviews and scoping reviews, among others.
Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions (6th Edition)
The Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions is the official guide that describes in detail the process of preparing and maintaining Cochrane systematic reviews on the effects of healthcare interventions.
Cochrane Training
On this site, you will find interactive learning resources and pathways as well as links to webinars, courses, and handbooks produced by the Cochrane Collaboration that relate to systematic review methods. Note that select resources on this site are limited to those with an existing Cochrane account while others are publicly available.
Systematic Reviews: CRD's Guidance for Undertaking Reviews in Health Care [PDF, 1.6MB]
Published by the Centre for Reviews and Dissemination, University of York, this guide outlines the methods and steps necessary to conduct a systematic review. It also addresses issues associated with reviews in specific areas, such as clinical tests, public health interventions, harm/adverse effects, economic evaluations, and how and why interventions work. Opens as PDF.
Finding What Works in Health Care: Standards for Systematic Reviews
This ebook, produced by the Institute of Medicine (2011), contains chapters on the following topics: Standards for initiating a systematic review -- Standards for finding and assessing individual studies -- Standards for synthesizing the body of evidence -- Standards for reporting systematic reviews -- Improving the quality of systematic reviews
Methods for the Thematic Synthesis of Qualitative Research in Systematic Reviews
Article abstract: There is a growing recognition of the value of synthesising qualitative research in the evidence base in order to facilitate effective and appropriate health care. In response to this, methods for undertaking these syntheses are currently being developed. Thematic analysis is a method that is often used to analyse data in primary qualitative research. This paper reports on the use of this type of analysis in systematic reviews to bring together and integrate the findings of multiple qualitative studies.
PRESS Peer Review of Electronic Search Strategies
The PRESS Guideline provides a set of recommendations concerning the information that should be used by librarians and other information specialists when they are asked to evaluate electronic search strategies developed for systematic review (SR) and health technology assessment (HTA) reports.

Social Sciences

Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis
This ebook, written by Littell, Corcoran, and Pillai (2008) and published by Oxford University Press, contains chapters on the following topics: Formulating a topic and developing a protocol -- Locating and screening studies -- Data extraction and study quality assessment -- Effect size metrics and pooling methods -- Assessing bias and variations in effects
Systematic Reviews in the Social Sciences: A Practical Guide
This ebook, written by Petticrew and Roberts (2006), contains chapters on the following topics: Why do we need systematic reviews? -- Starting the review : refining the question and defining the boundaries -- What sorts of studies do I include in the review? : deciding on the review's inclusion/exclusion criteria -- How to find the studies : the literature search -- How to appraise the studies : an introduction to assessing study quality -- Synthesizing the evidence -- Exploring heterogeneity and publication bias -- Disseminating the review -- Systematic reviews : urban myths and fairy tales
Finding and Evaluating Evidence: Systematic Reviews and Evidence-Based Practice
Part of the Pocket Guide to Social Work Research Method series, this ebook, written by Bronson and Davis (2012) and published by Oxford University Press, contains chapters on the following topics: Systematic reviews, evidence-based practice, and social work -- Asking the right questions, preparing a protocol, and finding the relevant research -- Critically appraising the quality and credibility of quantitative research for systematic reviews -- The art and science of managing and summarizing the available research -- Systematic reviews of qualitative research -- Assessing the quality of systematic reviews

Reporting Standards

Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA)
PRISMA is an evidence-based minimum set of items for reporting in systematic reviews and meta-analyses. PRISMA focuses on the reporting of reviews evaluating randomized trials, but can also be used as a basis for reporting systematic reviews of other types of research, particularly evaluations of interventions. This website includes the PRISMA statement (which outlines guidelines for reporting), the PRISMA flow diagram, and the PRISMA checklist, as well as a link to a document containing the PRISMA statement's explanation and elaboration.

Writing & Registering a Review Protocol

Writing a Protocol

A protocol is a written document that acts as an a priori plan for your evidence synthesis project. Beginning your project with a clear plan is important, even if the methods change along the way.

If your methods (e.g., search queries, inclusion/eligibility criteria) do change after you finish your protocol, you should document those changes in your final manuscript. For instance, completed Cochrane reviews often have a section titled 'Differences between protocol and review’.

Protocols generally contain sections for:

Background literature review
Review question
Criteria for inclusion/exclusion of studies
Types of studies, populations, interventions/exposures, outcome measures
Search strategy for identification of studies
Study selection methods
Assessment of methodological quality (if applicable)
Data extraction and synthesis
Timeframe for conducting the review

For systematic reviews, PRISMA provides guidance for preparing a protocol, as does the Joanna Briggs Institute's Manual for Evidence Synthesis.

For scoping reviews, section 11.2 in the JBI Manual outlines protocol development

Registering a Protocol

Once you've written the protocol for your evidence synthesis, consider publishing or registering it. Making the protocol publicly available, through publication or registration, improves research transparency, and can help avoid unnecessary duplication of work around the same review question.

PROSPERO
PROSPERO is an international database of prospectively registered systematic reviews in health and social care, welfare, public health, education, crime, justice, and international development, where there is a health related outcome. It aims to provide a comprehensive listing of systematic reviews, registered at inception, to help avoid duplication and reduce opportunity for reporting bias by enabling comparison completed review with what was planned in the protocol.
OSF Registries
Use the OSF (Open Science Framework) platform to preregister the protocol for your knowledge synthesis. OSF if a useful alternative to PROSPERO if you are not publishing a systematic review or a review of interventions with health-related outcomes. OSF is commonly used to register protocols for scoping reviews.

Publishing a Protocol

Many journals will publish a protocol for research, including systematic reviews. See the 'Information for Authors' or 'Submissions' sections of journal's websites to determine what kind of articles they publish.

Examples of Journals that Publish Protocols

BMC Journals
Many journals in BioMed Central's portfolio publish protocols for evidence syntheses. In particular, check out the journal 'Systematic Reviews'.
JBI Evidence Synthesis
The journal JBI Evidence Synthesis accepts manuscripts for evidence synthesis protocols, including systematic reviews of effects, reviews of qualitative evidence, scoping reviews and mix methods systematic reviews
JMIR Research Protocols
JMIR Research Protocols publishes protocols for systematic reviews and scoping reviews.

McGill Library. (2022). Guides: Systematic Reviews, Scoping Reviews, and Other Knowledge Syntheses: Developing the protocol. Retrieved February 4, 2022, from https://libraryguides.mcgill.ca/knowledge-syntheses/protocol