Systematic Review and Evidence Synthesis

Acknowledgements

This guide is directly informed by and selectively reuses, with permission, content from: 

Primary University of Minnesota Libraries authors are: Molly  Bostrom, Merete Christianson, Philip Herold, & Meghan Lafferty

Last updated: September 2024


 

Estimated time investments & Librarian involvement

An evidence synthesis review will typically require a year or more to complete, and librarians’ availability may vary, so please plan ahead and reach out to us as early as you can.

Below is a detailed chart that breaks down the steps of a traditional evidence synthesis review and the librarian co-author’s potential contributions.

Note: these time estimates may vary depending on the project, and some steps may happen concurrently.

Tasks and timelines for a traditional evidence synthesis review
Steps in a traditional evidence synthesis review Estimated time investment Potential contribution of librarian co-author
1. Assemble evidence synthesis review team and select project manager Varies Provide guidance
2. Identify appropriate review methodology 2 weeks Provide guidance
3. Define research question 2 weeks Provide information on appropriate question frameworks (e.g. PICO)
4. Define inclusion/exclusion criteria 1 week Provide guidance
5. Select databases 1 week Suggest appropriate databases
6. Select grey literature resources 1 week Suggest grey literature resources
7. Write search strategy for primary database 2-4 weeks Lead writing of the search strategy
8. Write and register protocol (written compilation of previous steps) Varies Provide comments on protocol and guide protocol registration process
9. Translate search strategy to syntax 2 of all databases (including grey literature) 2-4 weeks Translate search strategy
10. Search and export results into citation management software 2 weeks Perform searches and export results
11. De-duplicate results 2-4 weeks Perform de-duplication, or train your team on the process
12. Title and abstract screening 2–3 months* Recommend article screening software and advise on use of software
13. Retrieve full-text articles 1 month* Train team on full-text article retrieval
14. Full-text screening 2–3 months* Provide guidance
15. Risk-of-bias assessment 2–3 months Provide guidance
16. Data extraction 2–3 months Provide guidance
17. Meta-analysis or synthesis of results 2–3 months Provide guidance
18. Write the manuscript 2–3 months Write information retrieval portion of the methods section

 

Last Updated: Oct 15, 2024 2:23 PM