"A systematic review attempts to identify, appraise and synthesize all the empirical evidence that meets pre-specified eligibility criteria to answer a specific research question. Researchers conducting systematic reviews use explicit, systematic methods that are selected with a view aimed at minimizing bias, to produce more reliable findings to inform decision making".
https://www.cochranelibrary.com/about/about-cochrane-reviews
In contrast to the traditional literature review, systematic literature reviews use a more rigorous and precise approach to reviewing the literature in a specific subject area.
Researchers conducting a systematic review need to follow fixed yet flexible and iterative processes that describe necessary steps required to produce a rigorous synthesis of the literature.
You should document at the time all of the steps that you take to complete your review, as this allows your methodology to be compiled accurately.
It is vital to define your question and determine if any other systematic review has previously been conducted on this question. To reduce bias in a systematic review, it is vital to develop a review plan or protocol.
Steps include:
Source: Foster, M.J. and Jewell, S.T. (eds.), 2017. Assembling the pieces of a systematic review: a guide for librarians.
Before starting, it’s important to ensure that your research question has not already been successfully answered in a recent review, and that no reviews on the topic are planned or in progress. Reviews in progress (or prospective systematic reviews) may be referred to as protocols. A protocol clearly documents what the reviewers intend to do in their systematic review.
Protocols are used to pre-establish objectives and methods for your systematic review. They should be established prior to the formal literature search to help decrease bias. Registering protocols is recommended to avoid duplication of effort. Once you've developed your protocol, register it!
PROSPERO is the International prospective register of systematic reviews in health and social care, welfare, public health, education, crime, justice, and international development. (Cochrane protocols are automatically uploaded to Prospero).
Possibilities include using Excel or Word, keeping a journal, and creating personal database accounts for saving searches as you proceed.
Data collected should be accurate, complete, and in a format that allows for future updates and data sharing. We recommend using bibliographic software like EndNote Online.
As with any data collection and reporting process, it's worthwhile keeping in mind basic data management principles:
See: Research Data Management for more information.
Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (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.
Checkout the PRISMA resources:
There is no set number of resources to search; you need to ensure that the search is expansive and comprehensive and include published and (in most cases) unpublished sources. Best practice is to search more than one resource. Systematic reviews in health and medicine will often search 3-5 databases, and searching more is not unusual.
Start with identifying the key databases covering your subject area by taking a look at the databases on the appropriate subject guide, or by going directly to our Databases A-Z. Your Subject Librarian can also advise on the best ones to search.
Search Smart is a free online guide to researchers best search options.
Developing a search strategy is the process of converting your research question into a format that the database can interpret. Databases work by matching the search terms that you enter to the titles, abstracts, and subject headings in the records of items in the database. To locate the relevant literature, you need to use the same terms that are used in relevant sources.
For each identified concept in your research question, make a list of relevant keywords and subject headings. Once you have identified your key concepts, identify the words most likely to have been used in the published literature on this topic. It is important to develop a comprehensive range of terms for each discrete concept entailing a combination of subject headings and a wide range of keywords/phrases for each concept. It’s crucial to develop clear inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Create and test your search strategy in a primary database, then move on to running the search in other databases you've selected for your review.
For each identified concept in your research question, make a list of relevant keywords and subject headings.See Search Tips & Advanced Search Strategies.
Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions
The official guide that describes in detail the process of preparing and maintaining Cochrane systematic reviews on the effects of healthcare interventions. By Higgins JPT, Thomas J, Chandler J, Cumpston M, Li T, Page MJ, Welch VA (editors). Cochrane, 2023.
JBI Manual for Evidence Synthesis
JBI is an international evidence-based healthcare research organisation. This manual is a comprehensive guide to conducting JBI systematic reviews. It describes in detail the process of planning, undertaking and writing up a systematic review using JBI methods.
Table from: Robinson, P. and Lowe, J., 2015. Literature reviews vs systematic reviews. Australian and New Zealand journal of public health, 39(2), pp.103-103. https://doi.org/10.1111/1753-6405.12393
For information on other types of reviews see: A typology of reviews: an analysis of 14 review types and associated methodologies. Health Information & Libraries Journal, 26: 91-108. doi:10.1111/j.1471-1842.2009.00848.x
Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions by
The revised edition of the Handbook offers the only guide on how to conduct, report and maintain a Cochrane Review 
 The second edition of The Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions contains essential guidance for preparing and maintaining Cochrane Reviews of the effects of health interventions. Designed to be an accessible resource, the Handbook will also be of interest to anyone undertaking systematic reviews of interventions outside Cochrane, and many of the principles and methods presented are appropriate for systematic reviews addressing research questions other than effects of interventions. This fully updated edition contains extensive new material on systematic review methods addressing a wide-range of topics including network meta-analysis, equity, complex interventions, narrative synthesis, and automation. Also new to this edition, integrated throughout the Handbook, is the set of standards Cochrane expects its reviews to meet. Written for review authors, editors, trainers and others with an interest in Cochrane Reviews, the second edition of The Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions continues to offer an invaluable resource for understanding the role of systematic reviews, critically appraising health research studies and conducting reviews.
Doing a Systematic Review by
Completing a systematic review and unsure where to start or what path to take? Set out on your journey confidently with this practical guide written by a team of experienced academics. With a friendly, accessible style, the book covers every step of the systematic review process, from planning to dissemination. This book will help you to: * Work with qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods data * Understand the how-to of systematic reviews with a range of real-life examples and case studies * Learn from students who have been in your shoes with FAQs taken from actual supervision meetings. This book will not only support you to overcome common challenges and pitfalls, it will give you the knowledge and skills to produce an excellent review and you might even enjoy the journey! Alongside updated examples and case studies, this edition also includes two new chapters to help you write and register your review protocol and understand and synthesise data from correlational and experimental studies. The book is accompanied by an online guide for teaching, including videos, example documents, further reading, software recommendations and weblinks.
An Introduction to Systematic Reviews by
Focused on actively using systematic review as method, An Introduction to Systematic Reviews provides clear, step-by-step advice on the logic and processes of systematic reviewing.Stressing the importance of precision and accuracy, this practical text carefully balances a need for insightful theory with real-world pragmatism. The Second Edition features a new chapter on statistical synthesis and introduces a wide range of cutting-edge approaches to research synthesis, including text mining, living reviews, and new ideas in mixed methods reviews, such as qualitative comparative analysis.Packed with examples from across the social sciences, this book helps students and researchers alike in turning systematic reviews into recommendations for policy and practice.
Learning resources relevant to systematic reviews and evidence-based medicine.
Learn how to search systematically for information that you might need for research, for a literature review, publication, or report.
External training: Evidence Synthesis Ireland (ESI) Training & Webinars
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