LibGuides: Systematic Review: Scoping Review

Resources on Scoping Review

Aromataris E, Munn Z (Editors). JBI Manual for Evidence Synthesis. JBI, (2020). (select Chapter 11. Scoping reviews)
Munn, Z., Peters, M. D. J., Stern, C., Tufanaru, C., McArthur, A., & Aromataris, E. (2018). Systematic review or scoping review? Guidance for authors when choosing between a systematic or scoping review approach. BMC Medical Research Methodology, 18(1), 143.
Peters, M., Marnie, C., Tricco, A., Pollock, D., Munn, Z., Alexander, L., . . . Khalil, H. (2021). Updated methodological guidance for the conduct of scoping reviews. JBI Evidence Implementation, 19(1), 3-10.
Peters, M. D. J., Godfrey, C. M., Khalil, H., McInerney, P., Parker, D., & Soares, C. B. (2015). Guidance for conducting systematic scoping reviews. JBI Evidence Implementation, 13(3), 141-146.
PRISMA for Scoping Reviews - a checklist contains 20 essential reporting items and 2 optional items to include when completing a scoping review.
Scoping Reviews: what they are and how you can do them? - a Cochrane Learning Live webinar on scoping review in 2017.

What is a Scoping Review?

"At a general level, scoping studies might aim to map rapidly the key concepts underpinning a research area and the main sources and types of evidence available, and can be undertaken as stand-alone projects in their own right, especially where an area is complex or has not been reviewed comprehensively before"

Source: Arksey, H., & O'Malley, L. (2005). Scoping studies: Towards a methodological framework. International journal of social research methodology, 8(1), 19-32.

When do we use Scoping Review?

Scoping Review can be used for:

clarifying working definitions and conceptual boundaries of a topic or field.
determining the value of undertaking a full systematic review (e.g. Have systematic reviews already been conducted? What is the probable scope of a full systematic review?).
summarizing and disseminating research findings.
mapping existing literature in a given field in terms of its nature, features, and volume.
identifying research gaps, and making recommendations for future research.

Source: Peters, M. D. J., Godfrey, C. M., Khalil, H., McInerney, P., Parker, D., & Soares, C. B. (2015). Guidance for conducting systematic scoping reviews. JBI Evidence Implementation, 13(3), 141-146.

Comparison of Scoping Review with Systematic Review

The table below provides a comparison of Scoping Review with Systematic Review

	Scoping Review	Systematic review
Timeframe	more than 12 months	6 months to 2 years
Purpose	Provision of a preliminary assessment of the potential size and scope of available research literature Aims to identify the nature and extent of research evidence (usually including ongoing research)	Review result is used for answering a clinically meaningful question or providing evidence to inform practice or for answering a question addressing the feasibility, appropriateness, meaningfulness or effectiveness of a certain treatment or practice.
Strengths	Inform policymakers whether a full systematic review is needed Methodology is systematic, transparent and replicable (similar to systematic review)	Aims to provide synthesized evidence to inform clinical decision making The included studies are critically appraised and synthesized conducted in an unbiased and reproductive way (according to a predefined protocol)
Weaknesses	Lack of critically appraised and synthesised result to answer a particular question Formal assessment of methodological quality of the included studies is not always included Implications for practice (from a clinical or policy making point of view) maybe significantly limited	Result is limited to provide insights about effectiveness (e.g. whether a particular intervention is effective) rather than seeking answers to more complex search questions.

Sources:

Grant, M. J., & Booth, A. (2009). A typology of reviews: An analysis of 14 review types and associated methodologies. Health Information & Libraries Journal, 26(2), 91-108.
Peters, M. D. J., Godfrey, C. M., Khalil, H., McInerney, P., Parker, D., & Soares, C. B. (2015). Guidance for conducting systematic scoping reviews. JBI Evidence Implementation, 13(3), 141-146.