Researcher KnowHow presentation by Dr Michelle Maden, Research associate, Evidence synthesis, Institute of Population Health, University of Liverpool.

2. Dr Michelle Maden
Research associate
Evidence synthesis
Institute of Population
Health
▪ Liverpool Reviews and
Implementation Group

3. Liverpool Reviews and
Implementation Group (LRiG)
• Health Data Science, Institute of Population Health
• 20 years at the core of evidence-based guidance
development at NICE
• We deliver a range of high-quality Health Technology
Assessments and capacity development initiatives
(support for individuals and teams to use evidence to
develop practice, services and research)
@LivUniLRiG | liverpool.ac.uk/LRiG

4. Updated – new edition & resources
TinyURL.com/Doingareview2

5. 5
#&❤’d

6. Introduction to planning your search
strategy
1. What is a search strategy?
2. Where does the search ‘fit’ in the SR process?
3. Where should I search?
3. How do I search?

7. What is a search strategy?
Methods used to identify the evidence for your
review
Resources
Databases
Journals
Websites
Reference list
Experts…
Search terms
Frameworks
(PICO)
Keywords
Synonyms
Thesaurus terms
Search
techniques
Boolean
Limits
Truncation
Proximity
operators

8. Where does the search ‘fit’ in the
systematic review process?
Main stages in a systematic review (Boland et al., 2013:pp10-11)

9. Scoping the literature
• Check the sources in your subject area for
previously published systematic reviews

10. Planning and undertaking a systematic
review search strategy
Step 1
• Consider the
different
types of
information
available to
you
Step 2
• Identify the
specific
resources
that you will
search
Step 3
• Identify the
key search
terms that
you will use
Step 4
• Undertake
your
searches
Step 5
• Plan how you
are going to
store and
save the
results of
your search

11. Step 1: Consider the different types
of information available to you
• Empirical research
• Protocols
• Policy documents
• Practitioner surveys
• Evaluations
• Annual reports
• Working papers
• Conference
presentations/abstracts
• Guidelines
• Theses/dissertations

12. • Databases
• Conference proceedings
• Hand searching
• Grey literature (reports,
research registers,
professional/charity/
governmental websites)
Step 1
•Consider the
different
types of
information
available to
you
Step 2
•Identify the
specific
resources that
you will
search
Step 3
•Identify the
key search
terms that you
will use
Step 4
•Outline your
plans for
minimising
bias
Step 5
•Plan how you
are going to
store and
save the
results of your
search
• Foreign language
• Follow-up references
• Contacting
experts/authors
Guide to sources of information. Thames Valley and Wessex Literature Search Protocols
Table 3.2 Databases and other sources of information by discipline (Boland et al., 2013:pp43-44)

13. Publication bias
Whenever the research that appears in the published
literature is systematically unrepresentative of all
completed studies on a specific topic of interest.
Publication bias occurs because studies with
statistically significant, 'positive' results are more
likely to be…

14. • published (publication bias)
• published rapidly (time lag bias)
• published in higher impact journals and
more likely to be indexed in databases
(location bias)
• published in English (language bias)
• published more than once (multiple
publication bias)
• cited by others (citation bias)

15. Step 2:Identify the specific resources
that you will search
Type of
information
Topic
http://libguides.liverpool.ac.uk/
https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/library/

16. Step 3:Identify the key search terms
that you will use
Having a well defined review question will help
you to identify your key search terms
1. Identify keywords (could use frameworks –
PICO, SPICE, etc.) to identify concepts to search
on
2. Identify alternative words (synonyms/related
terms)

17. Identify keywords
For older people does taking part in singing
groups improve their mental health?
P
I
C
O
For older people
does taking part in
singing groups
improve their mental
health?
older people
singing
mental health

18. Identify alternative words (synonyms/
related words) - example
Keywords Synonyms/alternative words
older people
singing
mental health

19. Identify alternative words (synonyms/
related words) - example
Keywords Synonyms/alternative words
older people older person, elderly, senior
citizen(s), old age, geriatric, older
people
singing sing, singing, choir, choral, singer,
song, vocal exercises
mental health mental wellbeing, depression,
depressed, anxiety, anxious, self-
esteem

20. Combining search terms - OR
When combining synonyms,
spelling variants, acronyms,
more than one related terms of
each key idea
Retrieving documents in which
one or more of your terms may
be present
Increases the number of
references you will find
Makes your search more sensitive,
less likely to miss anything

21. 4. Identify alternative words (synonyms/
related words) - example
(older person OR older people OR elderly OR senior
citizen(s) OR old age OR geriatric)
(sing OR sings OR singer* OR choir OR choral OR singer OR
song OR vocal exercises)
(mental health OR mental wellbeing OR depression OR
depressed OR anxiety OR anxious OR self-esteem)

22. 3. Combining search terms - AND
To combine different
concepts
When interested in finding
articles which have to
contain all aspects of a
particular concept
Narrows down your search
each time you use AND
your search gets smaller

23. 4. Identify alternative words (synonyms/
related words) - example
(older person OR older people OR elderly OR senior
citizen(s) OR old age OR geriatric)
AND
(sing OR sings OR singer* OR choir OR choral OR singer OR
song OR vocal exercises)
AND
(mental health OR mental wellbeing OR depression OR
depressed OR anxiety OR anxious OR self-esteem)

24. Searching tips
“ “
“older people”
*
sing*
sing, sings, singer,
singers, singing
adj’n’
breast adj3 cancer
breast cancer,
cancer of the breast
Adjacency
operators*
Phrases Truncation
* Availability of this function and the syntax used will vary between
databases – check the help pages of the database you are searching

25. 4. Identify alternative words (synonyms/
related words) - example
(“older person” OR “older people” OR elderly OR senior
citizen* OR old age OR geriatric)
AND
(sing OR sings OR singer* OR choir OR choral OR song* OR
“vocal exercise*”)
AND
(“mental health” OR “mental wellbeing” OR depress* OR anxiety
OR anxious OR self-esteem)

26. Think about limits
Language?
Dates?
Study
designs?
Age group?
Human,
lab, animal?

27. • Demonstration
Step 4:Undertake your search

28. Recording search strategies
• Sources searched
• Search terms
• Date search conducted/updated
• No. of references found
• Keeping up-to-date
Email alerts
See also CRD Appendix 3 Documenting the search process

29. Reporting search strategies - Methods
• PRISMA (reporting guidance)
Describe all information sources (e.g., databases with dates
of coverage, contact with study authors to identify additional
studies) in the search and date last searched.
PRISMA #7 Information Sources
Present full electronic search strategy for at least one
database, including any limits used, such that it could be
repeated.
PRISMA #8 Search

30. Reporting search strategies - Results
• PRISMA Flowchart for Recording Search
Give numbers of studies screened, assessed for eligibility,
and included in the review, with reasons for exclusions at
each stage, ideally with a flow diagram.
PRISMA #17 Study Selection

31. Sources of help
(See also University of Liverpool Guide)
- Developing a search strategy
- The steps of a systematic review (short overview of
whole process)
- Database Guides/tutorials
- UoL subject librarians

32. Summary
▪ Introduction to planning a search strategy
▪ Accessing resources
▪ Identifying search terms
▪ Getting started with searching databases
▪ Recording your search