Research Guides: Psychology: Systematic Reviews and Literature Reviews

Guidelines for Systematic Reviews

PRISMA Checklist
The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) has developed a 27 checklist items pertaining to the content of a systematic review and meta-analysis, which include the title, abstract, methods, results, discussion and funding.
NIH Guidelines
This website provides guidelines developed by the Institute of Medicine (IOM).
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In 2011, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) defined a systematic evidence review as "a scientific investigation that focuses on a specific question and uses explicit, prespecified scientific methods to identify, select, assess, and summarize the findings of similar but separate studies. It may include a quantitative synthesis (meta-analysis), depending on the available data."

Register your Systematic Review

"PROSPERO is an international database of prospectively registered systematic reviews in health and social care, welfare, public health, education, crime, justice, and international development, where there is a health related outcome." (Website- About)

Conducting a Literature Review

The Literature Review (25 minutes Video - opens in a new window))
This in-depth video lecture explains how to write a Literature Review, and examines which elements are required in one. This video was created the Student Learning Centre at Massey University, Auckland.

Systematic Reviews - What to Consider

Before you Begin:

Did you know, it takes an average of 18 months to complete a systematic review?
Did you know that it's recommended to have at least 3 people on a systematic review team?
Did you know that a systematic review answers a very specific type of research question? Is your question a good fit for a systematic review?

Contact your librarian, Emily Hart, to learn more about systematic reviews.

Types of Reviews

Comparison of Review Types from Cornell University Libraries

"A systematic review is a review of the literature that is conducted in a methodical manner based on a pre-specified protocol and with the aim of synthesizing the retrieved information often by means of a meta-analysis."

"A literature review is a descriptive and/or analytic summary of the existing material relating to some topic or area of study."

(Sage Research Methods Online)

Systematic Review vs. Literature Review - What's the Difference?

Librarian

Emily Hart

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I am available for virtual meetings and research consultations. Please contact me via email.

Subjects: Biology, Chemistry, Communication Sciences and Disorders, Forensic Science, Mathematics, Physics, Psychology