Literature Reviews Flashcards
What is a literature review done in the first stage of the research process?
- Critical synopsis of research studies
- Offers insight into the research problem
- Helps answer if a full review of literature or a study is needed
Why is a research question important to a literature review?
o Essential first step for successful review
o Guides protocol development and scope
o Informs effective search strategy development
In a literature review, why is a protocol developed during the first stage of the study (conceptualize the study).
o Important for greater transparency and reduced bias
o Useful tools (systematic and scoping review): PRISMA-P
o Register the protocol (required for systematic reviews)
What resources might someone need to complete a formal literature review?
Time
o Systematic or scoping reviews often require 8-12 months
Funding
Team
o Size – minimum of 2 for blind-screening
o Experience – will need a methodologist
o Skills – ability to design or analyze, may need to research out for other members for these skills
What are some literature review types?
Narrative review - such as the studies we have done for school so far
Systematic review - includes ALL relevant studies
Integrative review - diverse sampling of research to understand a phenomenon (usually includes only 1 specific study type to look for)
Scoping review - maps out the literature on the topic, may be used to identify gaps
concept analysis - exploring a better understanding of a concept
Describe a narrative literature review
- Methodical review with clear review strategies and searches
- May be used as an academic assignment
- Small ones we have written in school
- May be used for proposals or grants
- Research study background
- Purpose – highlights of issue and evident gaps in research
- Process – no protocol or formal methodology
- Search – limited, not documented
- Inclusion – selective and based on purpose and context
- Systematic analysis – none
Describe a systematic literature review
- Focus is on a specific research question that is clearly defined
- Considered a research methodology
- Needs robust rigor to reduce biases
- Aim is to seek ALL relevant studies to give most accurate overview of research
- Includes published and unpublished
- Rigorous critical appraisal and evaluation of included study quality
- Often select studies with a specific methodology (i.e. randomized control trials)
- Probably most complicated review format
- Purpose
o Provide evidence as to effect
o Inform practice or policy - Research question
o Very specific and narrow focus on a single topic
o Uses the PICO(T) for quantitative or PEO for qualitative
What type of literature review highlights an issue or a gap in research but uses no formal methodology with the inclusion based on purpose and context?
Narrative review
What type of literature review design is very robust and seeks out ALL relevant studies that helps us to inform practice and policies?
Systematic review
Which types of literature reviews follow a protocol?
Systematic and scoping
It is encouraged in integrative, but not required
Not required at all for a narrative review
Which types of literature reviews involve a comprehensive search?
Systematic
Sometimes scoping
What type of search is used when performing an integrative literature review?
Balanced between thoroughness and relevance
Which types of literature reviews use blind screening?
Systematic and scoping
Which types of literature reviews use a critical appraisal
Systematic and Integrative
Narrative probably does because we have to appraise it for our papers lol
Scoping doesn’t because its just looking for the amount of literature exists
What types of literature reviews require data analysis and synthesis?
Systematic, scoping and integrative
narrative does not
Describe an integrative literature review
Seeks broad, holistic understanding of a phenomenon
o The new conceptualizations are what is important here
Diverse sampling of empirical, theoretical or both
o Systematic only look at a specific type of study (i.e. only RCTs)
Synthesizes literature, draws conclusions
Overview, critique, and gaps in literature
Often contributes to theory development
NOT comprehensive but still considered a type of research review
Role in previously extensively discussed and reviewed topics is:
o Re-examine and critically analyze the literature that has developed around a topic
o Re-conceptualize, as appropriate, the ideas and beliefs that underpin the topic
Role in newer emergent topic is:
o Development of a conceptual model or framework
Purpose
o Develop theoretical frameworks
o Synthesize diverse theoretical and empirical literature
o Gain holistic understanding of phenomenon or problem
Review question
o Broad guiding question about phenomenon of interest
o I.e. How can nursing student anxiety be reduced in the clinical setting without the use of simulation?
What type of literature review generally only looks at a specific type of study in order to develop a broad understanding of phenomenon in order to develop a theoretical framework?
Integrative review
Describe a scoping review
Does not identify evidence for practice, but rather to map the literature on the topic
Identifies scope of literature that is available on a particular topic or broad research question
Includes qualitative, quantitative, and conceptualizations
Often done when topic is new or diverse
Does not require critical appraisal
Searching may be as comprehensive as for a systematic review
o May determine if a systematic review should be done
Purpose
o Map body of literature
o Identify knowledge gaps
o Curiosity: What is known? How is it explored?
o Systematic review precursor
Review question
o Often follows PCC (Population-concept-context)
o i.e. What is the experience of nursing students with disabilities in clinical?
Experience is the concept
Nursing students with disabilities is the population
In clinical is the context
