Articlebronze2004

How does your searching grow? A survey of search preferences and the use of optimal search strategies in the identification of qualitative research

56 citations0/0 files storedHealth Information & Libraries Journal

No readable copy stored yet — this record is metadata only.

No open-access location is known for this record yet.

Literature note Cite in a project Citation map

Meta-analysis and systematic reviews Library Science and Information Literacy Qualitative Research Methods and Applications

Abstract

The objective was to gain an overview of researchers experiences of searching the literature, with particular reference to the use of optimal search strategies (OSSs) and searching for qualitative research studies. A 13-item semi-structured questionnaire investigating search behaviour was distributed to members of the Cochrane Qualitative Methods Network. Follow-up interviews were conducted with a subset of respondents to explore issues raised and clarify points of ambiguity. Findings were analysed using data reduction, data displays and verification techniques. Eighty-six per cent of distributed questionnaires were returned. All respondents reported searching electronic databases as part of their literature search, with 80% expressing a preference for searching alone or with colleagues. Forty-one per cent indicated that they consider a database search to be only one aspect of a comprehensive literature search. The rigour and availability of OSSs was a concern for 30% of respondents. Twenty-five per cent of respondents had searched for qualitative studies, although the difficulty of locating this type of literature was considered problematic because of the varied use of the term 'qualitative'. Whilst the majority of respondents reported using OSSs in some capacity, reservations were expressed about their ability to facilitate a comprehensive search. Replies indicated a belief that OSSs can reduce the sensitivity of a search, and might limit the breadth of coverage required. A greater appreciation of the availability and purpose of OSSs-including the ability to optimize either sensitivity or recall-is needed if this enhanced approach to accurate data retrieval and potential improvement in time management is to become widespread.

Paper brief

Loading…

Cite this work

Citation unavailable for this work.

BibTeX RIS CSL-JSON

No public copy is stored for this record, so only the metadata is cited.

Citations in this library

Citation map →

Stored only when both papers are in the corpus — 56 citations exist upstream.

References

1994Qualitative Data Analysis: An Expanded Sourcebook 1998Qualitative research methods in health technology assessment: a review of the literature.1994Developing Optimal Search Strategies for Detecting Clinically Sound Studies in MEDLINE 1999Effective Literature Searching for Research 1997Using the clinical question to teach search strategy: fostering transferable conceptual skills in user education by active learning

Cited by

2018How does psychiatric diagnosis affect young people's self-concept and social identity? A systematic review and synthesis of the qualitative literature 2013How to perform a systematic search 2014Social Work Literature Searching 2011Effectiveness of Search Strategies for Qualitative Research About Barriers and Facilitators of Program Delivery 2010Patient safety and systematic reviews: finding papers indexed in MEDLINE, EMBASE and CINAHL 2010Evaluation of five search strategies in retrieving qualitative patient‐reported electronic data on the impact of pressure ulcers on quality of life 2022A Tailored Approach: A model for literature searching in complex systematic reviews

Explore the map →

Papers that cite the same references — the relational fallback while embeddings are still backfilling.

Imported from OpenAlex (CC0) — nothing here is generated.