The evidence synthesis process is complex and requires not only expertise, but specific knowledge and skillsets. Temple University librarians trained in evidence synthesis methods can provide educational support or perform various steps of the review process for your team. Having a librarian on your team will give you expertise throughout the process, reliable results, and documented methods.
We expect that librarians who offer substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work; or the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data for the work will be offered co-authorship for per ICMJE recommendations http://www.icmje.org/recommendations/. For more information about librarian contributions to evidence synthesis see the citations below.*
Below is a detailed chart that breaks down the steps of a traditional systematic review and the librarian co-author’s potential contributions. Other review types may have different steps.
Details of the Traditional Systematic Review
| Steps in a Traditional Systematic Review | Potential Contribution of Librarian Co-Author |
| 1. Assemble systematic review team and select project manager | Provide guidance |
| 2. Identify appropriate review methodology | Provide guidance |
| 3. Define research question | Provide information on appropriate question frameworks (e.g. PICO) |
| 4. Define inclusion/exclusion criteria | Provide guidance |
| 5. Select databases | Suggest appropriate databases |
| 6. Select grey literature resources | Suggest grey literature resources |
| 7. Write search strategy for preliminary search | Lead writing of the search strategy |
| 8. Write and register protocol (written compilation of previous steps) | Provide comments on protocol and guide protocol registration process |
| 9. Translate search strategy to syntax of all databases (including grey literature) | Translate search strategy |
| 10. Search and export results into citation management software | Perform searches and export results |
| 11. De-duplicate results | Perform de-duplication, or train your team on the process |
| 12. Title and abstract screening | Recommend article screening software and advise on use of software |
| 13. Retrieve full-text articles | Provide guidance |
| 14. Full-text screening | Provide guidance |
| 15. Risk-of-bias assessment | Provide guidance |
| 16. Data extraction | Provide guidance |
| 17. Meta-analysis or synthesis of results | Provide guidance |
| 18. Write the manuscript | Write information retrieval portion of the methods section |
This table is directly informed by and selectively reuses, with permission, content from A Guide to Evidence Synthesis, Cornell University Library Evidence Synthesis Service. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Rethlefsen ML, Farrell AM, Trzasko LC, Brigham TJ. Librarian co-authors correlated with higher quality reported search strategies in general internal medicine systematic reviews. Journal of clinical epidemiology. 2015 Jun 1;68(6):617-26.
Meert D, Torabi N, Costella J. Impact of librarians on reporting of the literature searching component of pediatric systematic reviews. Journal of the Medical Library Association: JMLA. 2016 Oct;104(4):267.
Schellinger J, Sewell K, Bloss JE, Ebron T, Forbes C. The effect of librarian involvement on the quality of systematic reviews in dental medicine. PloS one. 2021 Sep 1;16(9):e0256833.
Aamodt M, Huurdeman H, Strømme H. Librarian co-authored systematic reviews are associated with lower risk of bias compared to systematic reviews with acknowledgement of librarians or no participation by librarians. Evidence Based Library and Information Practice. 2019;14(4):103-27.
Higgins JP, Thomas J, Chandler J, Cumpston M, Li T, Page MJ, Welch VA, editors. Cochrane handbook for systematic reviews of interventions. John Wiley & Sons; 2019 Sep 23.
Institute of Medicine (US) Committee on Standards for Systematic Reviews of Comparative Effectiveness Research. Finding What Works in Health Care: Standards for Systematic Reviews. Eden J, Levit L, Berg A, Morton S, editors. Washington (DC): National Academies Press (US); 2011.
