Research & Subject Guides: Using Covidence for Systematic and Scoping Reviews: Home

Systematic vs. Scoping Reviews

"A systematic review attempts to identify, appraise and synthesize all the empirical evidence that meets pre-specified eligibility criteria to answer a given research question. Researchers conducting systematic reviews use explicit methods aimed at minimizing bias, in order to produce more reliable findings that can be used to inform decision making” (Cochrane Library, n.d.).

"Scoping reviews, a type of knowledge synthesis, follow a systematic approach to map evidence on a topic and identify main concepts, theories, sources, and knowledge gaps” (Levac et al., 2010).

The table below shows the main differences between systematic and scoping reviews.

	Systematic reviews	Scoping reviews
Authors	Team-based (multiple authors)	One or more authors
Research question	Focused question	Focused or broad question(s)
Eligibility criteria	Set/fixed/developed a priori	Flexible
Search strategy	Set/fixed/developed a priori	Iterative, revisions acceptable
Results	Smaller result set	Larger result set
Appraisal	Required	Optional
Protocol and reporting guideline	PRISMA 2020; PRISMA-P	PRISMA-ScR
Analysis	Critically appraised formal synthesis	Overview and thematic

Sources:
About Cochrane Reviews | Cochrane Library. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.cochranelibrary.com/about/about-cochrane-reviews

Levac, D., Colquhoun, H., & O’Brien, K. K. (2010). Scoping studies: Advancing the methodology. Implementation Science, 5(1), 69. https://doi.org/10.1186/1748-5908-5-69

Review Guides

JBI Manual for Evidence Synthesis
Aromataris, E., & Munn Z. (Eds.). (2020). JBI Manual for Evidence Synthesis. https://doi.org/10.46658/JBIMES-20-01
The JBI Manual for Evidence Synthesis provides guidance to authors for the conduct and preparation of JBI systematic reviews and evidence syntheses.
Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions
Higgins, J. P. T., Thomas, J., Chandler, J., Cumpston, M., Li, T. Page, M. J., & Welch, V. A. (Eds.). (2019). Cochrane handbook for systematic reviews of interventions (2nd ed.). Wiley-Blackwell.
The revised edition of the Handbook offers the only guide on how to conduct, report and maintain a Cochrane Review.

Databases Commonly Used for Review Searches

The following databases are most commonly used to conduct systematic and scoping reviews. However, you should defer to the most common databases for your specific discipline.

PubMed This link opens in a new window
PubMed is a database with access to articles in biomedical and life science journals, many of which are full-text.
MEDLINE Ultimate This link opens in a new window
MEDLINE Ultimate offers access to evidence-based and peer-reviewed full-text content from top biomedical journals.
Web of Science This link opens in a new window
Web of Science is an academic citation index that covers the sciences, social sciences, arts, and humanities.
Scopus This link opens in a new window
Scopus is the largest abstract and citation database of peer-reviewed literature, including scientific journals, books, and conference proceedings.
CINAHL Ultimate This link opens in a new window
CINAHL Ultimate is the primary database for the nursing and allied health professions. It includes articles as well as standards of practice, practice acts, government publications, research instruments, and patient education materials.
PsycINFO This link opens in a new window
PsycINFO is the premier resource for finding articles in psychology, behavioral sciences, and related disciplines.

Access Covidence

Covidence This link opens in a new window
Covidence is a resource for systematic and scoping review management. It is a cloud-based tool with the ability to perform title/abstract screening, full-text screening, data abstraction, and quality assessment all in one place.

Help! How do I access Covidence for the first time?

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