The DOI matches its Crossref record; 5 of the 5 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Effectiveness and efficiency of search methods in systematic reviews of complex evidence: audit of primary sources
Open accessAbstract
OBJECTIVE: To describe where papers come from in a systematic review of complex evidence. Method Audit of how the 495 primary sources for the review were originally identified. RESULTS: Only 30% of sources were obtained from the protocol defined at the outset of the study (that is, from the database and hand searches). Fifty one per cent were identified by "snowballing" (such as pursuing references of references), and 24% by personal knowledge or personal contacts. CONCLUSION: Systematic reviews of complex evidence cannot rely solely on protocol-driven search strategies.
Overview
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Verification
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
The source backs part of the claim, not all of it — or backs it for a different population, condition or comparison.
In the citing paper
“and snowballing is the best approach for identifying sources published in obscure journals according to their study.”
From Guidelines for snowballing in systematic literature studies and a replication in software engineering (2014) · cites this paper as [15]
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredThe cited source says what the claim attributes to it.
In the citing paper
“These additional methods were used because prior work by Greehalgh and Peacock [91] found that less efficient methods like snowballing are likely to identify important sources that would otherwise be missed, since predefined protocol driven search strategies cannot solely be relied on.”
From Challenges and barriers in virtual teams: a literature review (2020) · cites this paper as [91]
The cited source says what the claim attributes to it.
In the citing paper
“We piloted the use of a highly structured search strategy using protocol-driven searches across a range of electronic databases but, like Greenhalgh and Peacock [17] found that was this unsatisfactory.”
From Conducting a critical interpretive synthesis of the literature on access to healthcare by vulnerable groups (2006) · cites this paper as [17]
The cited source says what the claim attributes to it.
In the citing paper
“Greenhalgh and Peacock [15] applied three different search methods in their research, and concluded that protocol-driven search approaches by themselves are not necessarily the most efficient method regardless of the number of databases used”
From Guidelines for snowballing in systematic literature studies and a replication in software engineering (2014) · cites this paper as [15]
The cited source says what the claim attributes to it.
In the citing paper
“the included articles’ reference lists also were evaluated (using the snowball method) to ensure that all relevant articles were included in the study [21].”
From Advantages and disadvantages of mobile applications for workplace health promotion: A scoping review (2024) · cites this paper as [21]
The check wasn’t confident either way, so it gives no verdict — never disputed.
In the citing paper
“After reading the first author ' s reports on the literature, the full research team decided to exclude another 71 articles from the selection that, based on the full text, proved not to meet the inclusion criteria.”
From The Role of School in Adolescents’ Identity Development. A Literature Review (2019) · cites this paper as Greenhalgh and Peacock (2005)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredIn the citing paper
“As many relevant studies may be identified in sources other than electronic databases [29,30], searches that extend beyond the standard electronic databases should be considered.”
From COSMOS-E: Guidance on conducting systematic reviews and meta-analyses of observational studies of etiology (2019) · cites this paper as [29]
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Citations
Cites
Synthesising qualitative and quantitative evidence: A review of possible methods
Dixon-Woods, M., Agarwal, S., Jones, D., Young, B., & Sutton, A. (2005) · Journal of Health Services Research & Policy · doi:10.1177/135581960501000110 · Cited by 2,132
Competing interests: none declared.
Hirsch, L. (2006) · Cited by 1,396
Storylines of research in diffusion of innovation: a meta-narrative approach to systematic review
Greenhalgh, T., Robert, G., Macfarlane, F., Bate, P., Kyriakidou, O., & Peacock, R. (2005) · Social Science & Medicine · doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2004.12.001 · Cited by 913
Self-citationRoyle, P., & Milne, R. (2003) · International Journal of Technology Assessment in Health Care · doi:10.1017/s0266462303000552 · Cited by 693
Diffusion of Innovations in Health Service Organisations: A Systematic Literature Review
Greenhalgh, T., Robert, G., Bate, P., Macfarlane, F., & Kyriakidou, O. (2007) · Cited by 453
Self-citation
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Items 501–600 of 1,004
Page, T. E., Farina, N., Brown, A., Daley, S., Bowling, A., Basset, T., Livingston, G., Knapp, M. R. J., Murray, J., & Banerjee, S. (2017) · BMJ Open · doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2016-013611 · Cited by 50
“Six additional articles were obtained using lateral searching techniques.(13) These searches involved the manual checking of reference lists of included studies (snowballing), citation searches using the ‘Cited by’ option on Web of Science, Google Scholar, and Scopus, and the ‘Related articles’ option”
MethodAlghababsheh, M., Gallear, D., & Rahman, M. (2018) · Journal of Business Ethics · doi:10.1007/s10551-018-3993-0 · Cited by 50
Optimising the delivery of remediation programmes for doctors: A realist review
Price, T., Wong, G., Withers, L., Wanner, A., Cleland, J., Gale, T. C. E., Prescott‐Clements, L., Archer, J. C., Bryce, M., & Brennan, N. (2021) · Medical Education · doi:10.1111/medu.14528 · Cited by 55
Receiving a diagnosis of young onset dementia: a scoping review of lived experiences
O’Malley, M., Carter, J., Stamou, V., Fontaine, J. L., Oyebode, J. R., & Parkes, J. H. (2019) · Aging & Mental Health · doi:10.1080/13607863.2019.1673699 · Cited by 50
Student expectations of teaching and learning when starting university: a systematic review
Tomlinson, A., Simpson, A., & Killingback, C. (2023) · Journal of Further and Higher Education · doi:10.1080/0309877x.2023.2212242 · Cited by 66
Systemic inflammatory response after hernia repair: a systematic review
Kokotovic, D., Burcharth, J., Helgstrand, F., & Gögenür, I. (2017) · Langenbeck s Archives of Surgery · doi:10.1007/s00423-017-1618-1 · Cited by 49
Urban Logistics: Establishing Key Concepts and Building a Conceptual Framework for Future Research
Rose, W. J., Bell, J. E., Autry, C. W., & Cherry, C. (2017) · Transportation Journal · doi:10.5325/transportationj.56.4.0357 · Cited by 49
“Additionally, a snowballing technique uncovered highly cited articles referenced in the original sample to expand the corpus (Greenhalgh and Peacock 2005 ).”
Contribution of physician assistants/associates to secondary care: a systematic review
Halter, M., Wheeler, C., Pelone, F., Gage, H., de Lusignan, S., Parle, J., Grant, R., Gabe, J., Nice, L., & Drennan, V. M. (2018) · BMJ Open · doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2017-019573 · Cited by 51
Banning, L. C. P., Ramakers, I. H. G. B., Deckers, K., Verhey, F. R. J., & Aalten, P. (2019) · Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews · doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2019.09.014 · Cited by 52
Ament, S. M. C., Couwenberg, I. M., Boyne, J. J., Kleijnen, J., Stoffers, J., Everdingen, M. H. J. V. D. B.-V., Engels, Y., Bellersen, L., & Janssen, D. J. A. (2020) · Palliative Medicine · doi:10.1177/0269216320963941 · Cited by 49
Sommer, M., Wagner, E. R., Zhu, S., McRae, S. M. B., MacDonald, P. B., Ogborn, D. I., & Woodmass, J. M. (2021) · Arthroscopy The Journal of Arthroscopic and Related Surgery · doi:10.1016/j.arthro.2021.03.076 · Cited by 49
“A secondary search was completed of the reference lists of the included studies as well as prior systematic reviews to ensure a complete data set was obtained.(54) Titles, abstracts, and full-text articleswere reviewed independently”
Students' and teachers' views of written feedback at undergraduate level: A literature review
Agius, N. M., & Wilkinson, A. (2014) · Nurse Education Today · doi:10.1016/j.nedt.2013.07.005 · Cited by 72
“Using Greenhalgh and Peacock's (2005) snowball sampling technique, key journals were scrutinised for other relevant publications.”
BackgroundMethodRhythm vs Rate Control Strategy for Atrial Fibrillation
Zafeiropoulos, S., Doundoulakis, I., Bekiaridou, Α., Farmakis, I. T., Papadopoulos, G. E., Coleman, K. M., Giannakoulas, G. A., Zanos, S. P., Tsiachris, D., Duru, F., et al. (2024) · JACC. Clinical electrophysiology · doi:10.1016/j.jacep.2024.03.006 · Cited by 52
Flynn, M., & McKeown, M. (2009) · Journal of Nursing Management · doi:10.1111/j.1365-2834.2009.01023.x · Cited by 48
Evaluating ecological effects of roadside slope restoration techniques: A global meta-analysis
Wang, M., Liu, Q., & Pang, X. (2020) · Journal of Environmental Management · doi:10.1016/j.jenvman.2020.111867 · Cited by 48
Kokotovic, D., Berkfors, A. A., Gögenür, I., Ekeloef, S., & Burcharth, J. (2020) · European Journal of Trauma and Emergency Surgery · doi:10.1007/s00068-020-01522-x · Cited by 49
Morton, T. A., Wong, G., Atkinson, T. J., & Brooker, D. (2021) · BMJ Open · doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2020-047789 · Cited by 53
Contador, I., Alzola, P., Stern, Y., de la Torre‐Luque, A., Bermejo‐Pareja, F., & Fernández‐Calvo, B. (2022) · Ageing Research Reviews · doi:10.1016/j.arr.2022.101814 · Cited by 47
Andresen, K., & Rosenberg, J. (2024) · Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews · doi:10.1002/14651858.cd004703.pub3 · Cited by 51
Thaler, K. J., Kien, C., Nußbaumer-Streit, B., Noord, M. V., Griebler, U., Klerings, I., & Gartlehner, G. (2015) · Journal of Clinical Epidemiology · doi:10.1016/j.jclinepi.2015.01.008 · Cited by 49
Shemilt, I., Hollands, G. J., Marteau, T. M., Nakamura, R., Jebb, S. A., Kelly, M. P., Suhrcke, M., & Ogilvie, D. (2013) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0075070 · Cited by 50
“scanning reference lists and forward citation tracking) [29] were conducted by one reviewer (IS) using PubMed and Google Scholar.”
MethodAssessing print and electronic use of reference/core medical textbooks
Ugaz, A. G., & Resnick, T. (2008) · Journal of the Medical Library Association JMLA · doi:10.3163/1536-5050.96.2.145 · Cited by 47
Requirements Engineering Visualization: A Systematic Literature Review
Abad, Z. S. H., Noaeen, M., & Ruhe, G. (2016) · IEEE International Requirements Engineering Conference (RE) · doi:10.1109/re.2016.61 · Cited by 47
“papers, so we performed citation tracking (forward snowballing [25]) to identify relevant papers citing the papers in the previous step.”
MethodGeraedts, M., Drösler, S. E., Döbler, K., Eberlein-Gonska, M., Heller, G., Kuske, S., Manser, T., Sens, B., Stausberg, J., & Schrappe, M. (2017) · Das Gesundheitswesen · doi:10.1055/s-0043-112431 · Cited by 47
“Das vorliegende Memorandum erläutert wesentliche etablierte Fragestellungen und Methoden der QPSF. Vor dem Hintergrund der besonderen gesundheitspolitischen Bedeutung des Themas werden Methoden der Messgrößenentwicklung und -prüfung, die Risikoadjustierung, Methoden zur Erhebung von Patientensicherheitsdaten, Instrume…”
BackgroundInfluentialViceconti, A., Camerone, E. M., Luzzi, D., Pentassuglia, D., Pardini, M., Ristori, D., Rossettini, G., Gallace, A., Longo, M. R., & Testa, M. (2020) · Frontiers in Human Neuroscience · doi:10.3389/fnhum.2020.00083 · Cited by 52
Characteristics of facilitators in knowledge translation: An integrative review
Elledge, C. M., Avworo, A., Cochetti, J., Carvalho, C., & Grota, P. G. (2018) · Collegian Journal of the Royal College of Nursing Australia · doi:10.1016/j.colegn.2018.03.002 · Cited by 46
Rojo‐Sanchis, J., Soto‐Peñaloza, D., Peñarrocha‐Oltra, D., Diago, M. P., & Viña‐Almunia, J. (2021) · BMC Oral Health · doi:10.1186/s12903-021-01495-2 · Cited by 46
Environmental sustainability in the event industry: a systematic review and a research agenda
Toscani, A. C., Vendraminelli, L., & Vinelli, A. (2024) · Journal of Sustainable Tourism · doi:10.1080/09669582.2024.2309544 · Cited by 46
“Finally, to tackle the rigidity inherent in SLR search strategies, we fine-tuned our sample following the recommendations by Greenhalgh and Peacock (2005).”
InfluentialBarriers to equitable disaster recovery: A scoping literature review
Ferreira, R. J., Davidson, T., Buttell, F., Contillo, C. M., Leddie, C., Leahy, C., Nuñez-Dune, C., Lentz, B., Simkins, M., Jerolleman, A., et al. (2024) · International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction · doi:10.1016/j.ijdrr.2024.104628 · Cited by 46
Graph Neural Networks for building and civil infrastructure operation and maintenance enhancement
Wettewa, S., Hou, L., & Zhang, G. (2024) · Advanced Engineering Informatics · doi:10.1016/j.aei.2024.102868 · Cited by 58
Seeing the Person in the Patient
Schubert, S. (2007) · Scientific American Mind · doi:10.1038/scientificamericanmind0607-50 · Cited by 46
Astin, F., Horrocks, J. A., & Closs, S. J. (2014) · BMC Cardiovascular Disorders · doi:10.1186/1471-2261-14-96 · Cited by 46
“These were a database searches, papers identified through personal knowledge and ‘snowballing’ using references from key papers to identify others [25].”
Gori, D., Guaraldi, F., Cinocca, S., Moser, G., Rucci, P., & Fantini, M. P. (2017) · Obesity Science & Practice · doi:10.1002/osp4.111 · Cited by 52
“(34) The inclusion and exclusion criteria and the algorithm followed for study retrieval and selection are reported in Figure 1.”
BackgroundWilkes, M., Mckenzie, M., & Webb, J. A. (2017) · Reviews in Fish Biology and Fisheries · doi:10.1007/s11160-017-9496-8 · Cited by 47
“However, Greenhalgh and Peacock (2005) have shown how systematic reviews of complex evidence cannot rely solely on predefined search strategies.”
BackgroundRochira, A., Tedesco, D., Ubiali, A., Fantini, M. P., & Gori, D. (2020) · Childhood Obesity · doi:10.1089/chi.2019.0253 · Cited by 46
Daily Self-Weighing to Control Body Weight in Adults
Pacanowski, C. R., Bertz, F., & Levitsky, D. A. (2014) · SAGE Open · doi:10.1177/2158244014556992 · Cited by 46
Hanna, R. F., & Gross, R. (2020) · Energy Policy · doi:10.1016/j.enpol.2020.111984 · Cited by 45
Bellos, I., Usha Devi, R., & Pandita, A. (2022) · Neonatology · doi:10.1159/000522317 · Cited by 45
A scoping review and bibliometric analysis of methods for fire evacuation training in buildings
Menzemer, L. W., Ronchi, E., Karsten, M. M. V., Gwynne, S., & Frederiksen, J. (2023) · Fire Safety Journal · doi:10.1016/j.firesaf.2023.103742 · Cited by 45
The Impact of Shipping on Air Quality in the Port Cities of the Mediterranean Area: A Review
Toscano, D. (2023) · Atmosphere · doi:10.3390/atmos14071180 · Cited by 47
“A complementary technique using “bibliographic search”, “citation tracking”, “snowballing”, or “pearl growing” was applied to identify more papers relevant to the current study [75,76].”
Infant-Feeding Practices Among African American Women
Reeves, E. A., & Woods‐Giscombé, C. L. (2014) · Journal of Transcultural Nursing · doi:10.1177/1043659614526244 · Cited by 45
Is Scrum Fit for Global Software Engineering?
Lous, P., Kuhrmann, M., & Tell, P. (2017) · IEEE International Conference on Global Software Engineering (ICGSE) · doi:10.1109/icgse.2017.13 · Cited by 45
“We searched for relevant articles by applying backward snowballing [12] on the references of an initial set of articles.”
MethodPhysicians’ Attitudes on Resuscitation of Extremely Premature Infants: A Systematic Review
Cavolo, A., de Casterlé, B. D., Naulaers, G., & Gastmans, C. (2019) · PEDIATRICS · doi:10.1542/peds.2018-3972 · Cited by 45
Systematic review on the implementation methodologies of inherent safety in chemical process
Gao, X., Raman, A. A. A., Hizaddin, H. F., & Bello, M. M. (2020) · Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industries · doi:10.1016/j.jlp.2020.104092 · Cited by 45
Kifokeris, D., & Koch, C. (2020) · Journal of Information Technology in Construction · doi:10.36680/j.itcon.2020.029 · Cited by 40
“Moreover, the references-of-references and “snowballing” techniques (Greenhalgh and Peacock, 2005), and the conduct of a comprehensive search to avoid a narrow sample (MacLure, 2005), were implemented.”
MethodHaller, K., Becker, P., Niemeyer, H., & Boettcher, J. (2023) · Internet Interventions · doi:10.1016/j.invent.2023.100635 · Cited by 46
“Further potentially relevant studies were identified using the snowballing technique (Greenhalgh and Peacock, 2005), specifically: (a) the references of included articles were screened, and (b) the personal, (expert) knowledge of the subject area was utilized.”
MethodMagi, C. E., Bambi, S., Iovino, P., Aoufy, K. E., Amato, C., Balestri, C., Rasero, L., & Longobucco, Y. (2023) · Behavioral Sciences · doi:10.3390/bs13070616 · Cited by 44
“Any disagreement between the authors in the data extraction was resolved by a consensus discussion to make the final decision [27].”
Balancing sustainability and circular justice: The challenge of the energy transition
Cerchione, R., Morelli, M., Passaro, R., & Quinto, I. (2025) · Journal of Cleaner Production · doi:10.1016/j.jclepro.2025.144942 · Cited by 45
Anderson, N. E., Gott, M., & Slark, J. (2016) · European Journal of Emergency Medicine · doi:10.1097/mej.0000000000000407 · Cited by 44
Architectural technical debt identification
Verdecchia, R., Malavolta, I., & Lago, P. (2018) · IEEE/ACM International Conference on Technical Debt (TechDebt) · doi:10.1145/3194164.3194176 · Cited by 44
“the construct validity of this study, the automatic search was complemented by a snowballing process [13].”
MethodParker, S., Hopkins, G., Siskind, D. J., Harris, M., McKeon, G. L., Dark, F. L., & Whiteford, H. (2019) · BMC Psychiatry · doi:10.1186/s12888-019-2019-5 · Cited by 44
Díaz‐Sánchez, M., Soto‐Peñaloza, D., Peñarrocha‐Oltra, D., & Peñarrocha‐Diago, M. (2019) · Journal of Periodontal Research · doi:10.1111/jre.12663 · Cited by 46
Sleep bruxism and oral health‐related quality of life in children: A systematic review
Rodrigues, J. A., Azevedo, C. B., Chami, V. D. O., Solano, M. P., & Lenzi, T. L. (2019) · International Journal of Paediatric Dentistry · doi:10.1111/ipd.12586 · Cited by 44
The impact of school gardens on youth social and emotional learning: a scoping review
Lohr, A. M., Krause, K. C., McClelland, D. J., Gorden, N. V., Gerald, L. B., Casino, V. J. D., Wilkinson‐Lee, A. M., & Carvajal, S. C. (2020) · Journal of Adventure Education & Outdoor Learning · doi:10.1080/14729679.2020.1838935 · Cited by 44
Bader, M., Zheng, L., Rao, D., Shiyanbola, O. O., Myers, L., Davis, T. C., O’Leary, C. C., McKee, M. M., Wolf, M. S., & Assaf, A. R. (2022) · Contemporary Clinical Trials · doi:10.1016/j.cct.2022.106733 · Cited by 44
Clinical performance of polymer frameworks in dental prostheses: A systematic review
Gama, L. T., Bezerra, A. P., Schimmel, M., Garcia, R. C. M. R., Canto, G. D. L., & Gonçalves, T. M. S. V. (2022) · Journal of Prosthetic Dentistry · doi:10.1016/j.prosdent.2022.03.002 · Cited by 43
Young, I., Waddell, L. A., Sánchez, J., Wilhelm, B., McEwen, S. A., & Rajić, A. (2013) · Preventive Veterinary Medicine · doi:10.1016/j.prevetmed.2013.11.009 · Cited by 48
Consumer Decision-Making of Older People: A 45-Year Review
Hettich, D., Hattula, S., & Bornemann, T. (2017) · The Gerontologist · doi:10.1093/geront/gnx007 · Cited by 43
Braun, A., Trivedi, D. P., Dickinson, A. M., Hamilton, L. K., Goodman, C. M., Gage, H., Ashaye, K., Iliffe, S., & Manthorpe, J. (2018) · Dementia · doi:10.1177/1471301218762856 · Cited by 49
Pettigrew, L. M., Kumpunen, S., Rosen, R., Posaner, R., & Mays, N. (2018) · Health Policy · doi:10.1016/j.healthpol.2018.10.017 · Cited by 43
Dávid, I., Latifaj, M., Pietron, J., Zhang, W., Ciccozzi, F., Malavolta, I., Raschke, A., Steghöfer, J.-P., & Hebig, R. (2022) · Software & Systems Modeling · doi:10.1007/s10270-022-01010-3 · Cited by 45
“38 A potentially relevant entry is selected if it (i) satisfies all inclusion criteria and (ii) does not satisfy any of the exclusion criteria.”
BackgroundMethodThe effect of running on foot muscles and bones: A systematic review
Garofolini, A., & Taylor, S. B. (2019) · Human Movement Science · doi:10.1016/j.humov.2019.01.006 · Cited by 42
Aligning Indigenous values and cultural ecosystem services for ecosystem accounting: A review
Normyle, A., Vardon, M., & Doran, B. J. (2022) · Ecosystem Services · doi:10.1016/j.ecoser.2022.101502 · Cited by 48
Automation in manufacturing and assembly of industrialised construction
Li, X., Zou, Y., Lu, Y., & Chang-Richards, A. Y. (2024) · Automation in Construction · doi:10.1016/j.autcon.2024.105945 · Cited by 54
Hunfeld, J. A. M., & Passchier, J. (2011) · Patient Education and Counseling · doi:10.1016/j.pec.2011.09.006 · Cited by 42
“Electronic databases (PubMed and PsycINFO) and the snowball method (citations in articles reviewed) [16] were used to identify candidate studies.”
MethodThematic analysis of written assignment feedback: Implications for nurse education
Parboteeah, S., & Anwar, M. (2009) · Nurse Education Today · doi:10.1016/j.nedt.2009.02.017 · Cited by 42
The current state of systematic reviews in library and information studies
Xu, J., Kang, Q., & Song, Z. (2015) · Library & Information Science Research · doi:10.1016/j.lisr.2015.11.003 · Cited by 46
Green IS Research: A Modernity Perspective
Laval, U., Idrissi, S. C. E., Corbett, J., & Laval, U. (2016) · Communications of the Association for Information Systems · doi:10.17705/1cais.03830 · Cited by 44
“Subsequent to the structured database searches, we engaged in further article collection using a snowball method, where literature is found from that already procured, as suggested by Greenhalgh and Peacock (2005).”
Lean Product Development: Nothing New Under the Sun?
Salgado, E. G., & Dekkers, R. (2018) · International Journal of Management Reviews · doi:10.1111/ijmr.12169 · Cited by 29
“Furthermore, snowballing (see Greenhalgh and Peacock [2005] and Wohlin and Prikladnicki [2013]) was applied to the publications found through the databases.”
Developing a dynamic HIV transmission model for 6 U.S. cities: An evidence synthesis
Krebs, E., Enns, B., Wang, L., Zang, X., Panagiotoglou, D., del Rı́o, C., Dombrowski, J. C., Feaster, D. J., Golden, M. R., Granich, R., et al. (2019) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0217559 · Cited by 43
Glera-Suárez, P., Soto‐Peñaloza, D., Peñarrocha‐Oltra, D., & Diago, M. P. (2020) · Medicina oral, patología oral y cirugía bucal · doi:10.4317/medoral.23320 · Cited by 42
“Additionally, the reference lists of included studies were consulted to retrieve potentially eligible titles not identified through the electronic search, as suggested by Greenhalgh and Peacock (15).”
BackgroundMethodCatania, L. S., Hetrick, S. E., Newman, L. K., & Purcell, R. (2011) · Advances in Mental Health · doi:10.5172/jamh.2011.10.1.6 · Cited by 41
“We supplemented the search with ‘snowballing’ (Greenhalgh & Peacock, 2005) to enable further examination of the research conducted on models of integrated care that incorporate some degree of collaboration between professionals.”
MethodFerlie, E. B., Nicolini, D., Ledger, J., D’Andreta, D., Kravčenko, D., & de Pury, J. (2017) · Health Services and Delivery Research · doi:10.3310/hsdr05170 · Cited by 44
Improving instructional practice through peer observation and feedback: A review of the literature
Ridge, B. L., & Lavigne, A. L. (2020) · Education Policy Analysis Archives · doi:10.14507/epaa.28.5023 · Cited by 64
“Greenhalgh and Peacock (2005) argue that in order to provide a robust illustration of a body of literature on a particular topic, systematic reviews cannot rely solely on the results acquired from predefined search protocols.”
BackgroundMethodBolster-Foucault, C., Fane, B. H. M., & Blair, A. (2021) · Health Promotion and Chronic Disease Prevention in Canada · doi:10.24095/hpcdp.41.3.03 · Cited by 42
Han, J., Zhou, H., Löwik, S. J. A., & de Weerd-Nederhof, P. C. (2022) · Industrial Marketing Management · doi:10.1016/j.indmarman.2022.08.008 · Cited by 51
Architecting ML-enabled systems: Challenges, best practices, and design decisions
Nazir, R., Bucaioni, A., & Pelliccione, P. (2023) · Journal of Systems and Software · doi:10.1016/j.jss.2023.111860 · Cited by 44
Prodanović, V., Bach, P. M., & Stojković, M. (2024) · Urban Ecosystems · doi:10.1007/s11252-024-01558-6 · Cited by 52
“Drawing inspiration from the work of Greenhalgh et al. (2005) on narrative synthesis, our narra - tive approach allows us to weave together historical con - text, theoretical frameworks, and contemporary practices.”
Updating comparative effectiveness reviews: Current efforts in AHRQ's Effective Health Care Program
Tsertsvadze, A., Maglione, M., Chou, R., Garritty, C., Coleman, C. I., Lux, L. J., Bass, E. B., Balshem, H., & Moher, D. (2011) · Journal of Clinical Epidemiology · doi:10.1016/j.jclinepi.2011.03.011 · Cited by 41
Høyland, S. A. (2017) · Safety Science · doi:10.1016/j.ssci.2017.10.019 · Cited by 41
Direct verbal aggression in school settings: A review of the literature
Poling, D. V., Smith, S. W., Taylor, G. G., & Worth, M. R. (2019) · Aggression and Violent Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.avb.2019.01.010 · Cited by 41
Miguel, A. F. P., Mello, F. W., Melo, G., & Rivero, E. R. C. (2019) · Head & Neck · doi:10.1002/hed.26009 · Cited by 41
Management of UK priority invasive alien plants: a systematic review protocol
Martin, P. A., Shackelford, G. E., Bullock, J. M., Gallardo, B., Aldridge, D. C., & Sutherland, W. J. (2020) · Environmental Evidence · doi:10.1186/s13750-020-0186-y · Cited by 40
Lesson Study as a Faculty Development Initiative in Higher Education: A Systematic Review
Hervas, G. (2021) · AERA Open · doi:10.1177/2332858420982564 · Cited by 40
“Following this, the reference lists of studies that passed the second screening was reviewed in order to conduct a backward snowballing search (Jalali & Wohlin, 2012), a method useful to find less visible literature (Greenhalgh & Peacock, 2005).”
MethodMortality after emergency versus elective groin hernia repair: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Sæter, A. H., Fonnes, S., Rosenberg, J., & Andresen, K. (2022) · Surgical Endoscopy · doi:10.1007/s00464-022-09327-2 · Cited by 40
“Finally, a snowball search was conducted where reference lists from the included articles were screened for potentially eligible studies [12].”
MethodWang, L., Zhao, Y., & Yin, X. (2023) · Journal of Cleaner Production · doi:10.1016/j.jclepro.2023.137054 · Cited by 40
Lee, K. S., Borbas, B., Plaha, P., Ashkan, K., Jenkinson, M. D., & Price, S. J. (2024) · World Neurosurgery · doi:10.1016/j.wneu.2024.02.133 · Cited by 40
Kokkinou, M., Beishon, L., Smailagic, N., Noel-Storr, A. H., Hyde, C., Ukoumunne, O. C., Worrall, R., Hayen, A., Desai, M., Ashok, A. H., et al. (2021) · Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews · doi:10.1002/14651858.cd010945.pub2 · Cited by 43
Cacciatore, G., Ugolini, A., Sforza, C., Gbinigie, O. A., & Plüddemann, A. (2019) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0221624 · Cited by 40
Examining prospects and challenges of Ghana’s petroleum industry: A systematic review
Abudu, H., & Sai, R. (2020) · Energy Reports · doi:10.1016/j.egyr.2020.04.009 · Cited by 40
How innovation can be defined, evaluated and rewarded in health technology assessment
Rejón-Parrilla, J. C., Espín, J., & Epstein, D. M. (2022) · Health Economics Review · doi:10.1186/s13561-021-00342-y · Cited by 40
Drennan, V. M., Rait, G., Cole, L., Grant, R., & Iliffe, S. (2012) · Neurourology and Urodynamics · doi:10.1002/nau.22333 · Cited by 40
Methods for documenting systematic review searches: a discussion of common issues
Rader, T., Mann, M., Stansfield, C., Cooper, C., & Sampson, M. (2014) · Research Synthesis Methods · doi:10.1002/jrsm.1097 · Cited by 37
“Over half (51%) were identified by supplementary search methods (such as pursuing reference lists), and 24% by personal knowledge or personal contacts’ (Greenhalgh and Peacock, 2005).”
BackgroundMethodInfluentialRodríguez, D., Carlos Jerjes-Sánchez, D., Fonseca, S., Garcia-Toto, R., Martinez-Alvarado, J. D., Panneflek, J., Ortiz-Ledesma, C., & Nevarez, F. (2020) · Journal of Thrombosis and Thrombolysis · doi:10.1007/s11239-020-02122-7 · Cited by 43
“We used the snowballing method [10], a manual search to avoid lost reports, and no language restriction.”
MethodBreit, M., Brunner, M., Molenaar, D., & Preckel, F. (2022) · Psychological Bulletin · doi:10.1037/bul0000379 · Cited by 45
Water innovation in industrial symbiosis - A global review
Ramin, E., Faria, L., Gargalo, C. L., Ramin, P., Flores‐Alsina, X., Andersen, M. M., & Gernaey, K. V. (2023) · Journal of Environmental Management · doi:10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.119578 · Cited by 39
“In addition, we applied a snowball procedure (Greenhalgh and Peacock, 2005) to identify additional papers using the reference lists of the papers resulting from the initial search.”
MethodNagarajan, I., & Priya, G. G. L. (2025) · Frontiers in Computer Science · doi:10.3389/fcomp.2024.1404494 · Cited by 47
Lost in publication: Half of all renal practice evidence is published in non-renal journals
Garg, A. X., Iansavichus, A. V., Kastner, M., Walters, L. A., Wilczynski, N. L., McKibbon, K. A., Yang, R. C., Rehman, F., & Haynes, R. B. (2006) · Kidney International · doi:10.1038/sj.ki.5001896 · Cited by 39
Archetypes of Translation: Recommendations for Dialogue
O’Mahoney, J. (2016) · International Journal of Management Reviews · doi:10.1111/ijmr.12103 · Cited by 39
Health effects of flooding in Canada: A 2015 review and description of gaps in research
Burton, H., Rabito, F. A., Danielson, L., & Takaro, T. K. (2016) · Canadian Water Resources Journal / Revue canadienne des ressources hydriques · doi:10.1080/07011784.2015.1128854 · Cited by 39
Metadata
- Authors
- Greenhalgh, T., & Peacock, R.
- Affiliations
- University College London (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Greenhalgh, Trisha
- ORCID
- Greenhalgh, Trisha
- Venue
- BMJ
- Publisher
- BMJ
- Published
- 2005-10-17
- Volume
- 331
- Issue
- 7524
- Pages
- 1064-1065
- ISSN
- 0007-1447 (ISSN-L)
- 0959-8138
- 1468-5833
- PMC
- PMC1283190
- OpenAlex
- W2149364707
- Semantic Scholar
- 45cd85a4c05c0c295e4569e08f20a6f3268e6390
- Cited by
- 2,045
- References
- 5
- Citations by year
- 2026: 162 · 2025: 147 · 2024: 202 · 2023: 188 · 2022: 187 · 2021: 210 · 2020: 157 · 2019: 139 · 2018: 88 · 2017: 92 · 2016: 77 · 2015: 74 · 2014: 83 · 2013: 69 · 2012: 41
- FWCI
- 2.94
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- BMJ (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- UCL Discovery (University College London) (submittedVersion)
- HighWire Press Open Archive (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Decision Sciences › Statistics, Probability and Uncertainty › Meta-analysis and systematic reviews
- Social Sciences › Library and Information Sciences › scientometrics and bibliometrics research
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Health Sciences Research and Education
- Keywords
- systematic reviews, snowballing, protocol adherence, database searching, hand searching
- MeSH terms
- Data Collection, Review Literature as Topic, Information Storage and Retrieval
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
