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Knowledge syntheses: systematic & scoping reviews, and other review types.
- Before you start
- Getting Started
- Different Types of Knowledge Syntheses
- Assemble a Team
- Develop your Protocol
- Eligibility Criteria
- Screening for articles
- Data Extraction
- Critical appraisal
- What are Systematic Reviews?
- What is a Meta-Analysis?
- What are Scoping Reviews?
- What are Rapid Reviews?
- What are Realist Reviews?
- What are Mapping Reviews?
When is an integrative review methodology appropiate?
Elements of an integrative review, methods and guidance.
- What are Umbrella Reviews?
- Standards and Guidelines
- Supplementary Resources for All Review Types
- Resources for Qualitative Synthesis
- Resources for Quantitative Synthesis
- Resources for Mixed Methods Synthesis
- Bibliography
- More Questions?
- Common Mistakes in Systematic Reviews, scoping reviews, and other review types
An integrative review is a specific review method that summarises past empirical or theoretical literature to provide a greater comprehensive understanding of a particular phenomenon or healthcare problem (Broome 1993). Thus, integrative reviews have the potential to build upon nursing science, informing research, practice, and policy initiatives.
An integrative review method is an approach that allows for the inclusion of diverse methodologies (i.e. experimental and non-experimental research) and has the potential to play a greater role in evidence-based practice for nursing (Whittemore et al., 2005) .
When to Use It: According to Toronto, C., & Remington, R.(2020) , Whitmore et al. (2005) , Broome (1993): an integrative review approach is best suited for:
A research scope focused more broadly at a phenomenon of interest rather than a systematic review and allows for diverse research, which may contain theoretical and methodological literature to address the aim of the review
Supporting a wide range of inquiry, such as defining concepts, reviewing theories, or analyzing methodological issues
Examining the complexity of nursing practice more broadly by using diverse data sources
The following characteristics, strengths, and challenges of integrative reviews are derived from Toronto, C., & Remington, R.(2020) , Whitmore et al. (2005) , Broome (1993):
Characteristics:
A review method that summarises past empirical or theoretical literature to provide a more comprehensive understanding of a particular phenomenon or healthcare problem
An integrative review is best designed for nursing practice
The problem must be clearly defined
The aim of the review is to analyze experimental and non-experimental research simultaneously in order to:
Define concepts
Review theories
Review evidence/point out gaps in the literature
Analyze methodological issues
Best designed for nursing research
Evidence produced from well-conducted integrative reviews contributes to nursing knowledge by clarifying phenomena, which in turn informs nursing practice and clinical practice guidelines
Challenges:
The combination and complexity of incorporating diverse methodologies can contribute to a lack of rigour, inaccuracy, and bias
Methods of analysis, synthesis, and conclusion-drawing remain poorly formulated
Combining empirical and theoretical reports can be difficult
There is no current guidance on reporting
The following resources are considered to be the best guidance for conduct in the field of integrative reviews.
METHODS & GUIDANCE
Hopia, H., Latvala, E., & Liimatainen, L. (2016). Reviewing the methodology of an integrative review. Scandinavian journal of caring sciences , 30 (4), 662–669. https://doi.org/10.1111/scs.12327
Russell C. L. (2005). An overview of the integrative research review. Progress in transplantation (Aliso Viejo, Calif.) , 15 (1), 8–13
Toronto, & Remington, R. (2020). A Step-By-Step Guide to Conducting an Integrative Review (1st ed.). Springer International Publishing AG.
Whittemore, R., & Knafl, K. (2005). The integrative review: updated methodology . Journal of advanced nursing , 52 (5), 546–553. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2648.2005.03621.x
REPORTING GUIDELINE
There is currently no reporting guideline for integrative reviews.
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- Next: What are Umbrella Reviews? >>
- Last Updated: Nov 4, 2024 11:55 AM
- URL: https://guides.library.utoronto.ca/systematicreviews
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Integrative review: what is it? How to do it?
Affiliation.
- 1 Faculdade de Enfermagem do Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein - FEHIAE, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
- PMID: 26761761
- DOI: 10.1590/S1679-45082010RW1134
Introduction: The integrative review is the methodology that provides synthesis of knowledge and applicability of results of significant studies to practice.
Objective: To present the phases of an integrative review and the relevant aspects to be taken into account when using this methodological resource.
Methods: This study was based on bibliographic search and on the experience of the authors when performing an integrative review.
Results: Presentation of the six stages of the integrative review process: preparing the guiding question, searching or sampling the literature, data collection, critical analysis of the studies included, discussion of results and presentation of the integrative review.
Conclusions: Considering the need to assure care based on scientific evidence, the integrative review has been identified as a unique tool in healthcare for it synthesizes investigations available on the given topic and guides practice based on scientific knowledge.
A Step-by-Step Guide to Conducting an Integrative Review
- © 2020
- Coleen E. Toronto 0 ,
- Ruth Remington 1
School of Nursing, Curry College, Milton, USA
You can also search for this editor in PubMed Google Scholar
Department of Nursing, Framingham State University, Framingham, USA
- Defines the key features that distinguish the integrative review from other types of literature reviews
- Guides the reader through the complete process of conducting the integrative review
- Promotes valid and reliable integrative reviews that support evidence-base nursing practice
- Offers clear, and practical step-by-step instructions
- Makes connections to published nursing research
- Appropriate for any nurse author of an integrative review, student, clinician, academic or researcher
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Reviewing the literature, how systematic is systematic?
From Qualitative Reviews to Umbrella Reviews
Integrating Research into Care
- Integrative review process
- Literature reviews
- Systematic literature search
- Nursing Research
- Integrative Review Method
Table of contents (7 chapters)
Front matter, overview of the integrative review.
Coleen E. Toronto
Formulating Review Question
- Karen Devereaux Melillo
Searching Systematically and Comprehensively
- Jane Lawless, Margaret J. Foster
Quality Appraisal
Ruth Remington
Analysis and Synthesis
- Patricia A. Dwyer
Discussion and Conclusion
- Coleen E. Toronto, Ruth Remington
Dissemination of the Integrative Review
- Kristen A. Sethares
Editors and Affiliations
About the editors.
Coleen Toronto , PhD, RN, CNE, is an Associate Professor in the School of Nursing at Curry College, USA. Dr. Toronto is a BSN graduate of Northeastern University, received her master’s in nursing education from Framingham State University, and her PhD in nursing from University of Massachusetts Dartmouth. Dr. Toronto is a Certified Nurse Educator (CNE). Her research interests include integrative review methodology, nursing education, health literacy and Delphi methodology.
Bibliographic Information
Book Title : A Step-by-Step Guide to Conducting an Integrative Review
Editors : Coleen E. Toronto, Ruth Remington
DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-37504-1
Publisher : Springer Cham
eBook Packages : Medicine , Medicine (R0)
Copyright Information : Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
Softcover ISBN : 978-3-030-37503-4 Published: 18 February 2020
eBook ISBN : 978-3-030-37504-1 Published: 17 February 2020
Edition Number : 1
Number of Pages : XII, 106
Number of Illustrations : 3 b/w illustrations, 8 illustrations in colour
Topics : Nursing Research , Nursing Education , Research Skills
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IMAGES
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COMMENTS
The integrative review (IR) is a methodology of importance to nursing and other disciplines to evaluate and synthesize data from diverse sources to answer research questions, generate new theories, and to provide a comprehensive view of what is known regarding a topic of interest.
An integrative review method is an approach that allows for the inclusion of diverse methodologies (i.e. experimental and non-experimental research) and have the potential to play a greater role in evidence-based practice for nursing (Whittemore & Knafl, 2005). Characteristics: An integrative review is best designed for nursing research
An integrative review is a specific review method that summarises past empirical or theoretical literature to provide a greater comprehensive understanding of a particular phenomenon or healthcare problem (Broome 1993). Thus, integrative reviews have the potential to build upon nursing science, informing research, practice, and policy initiatives.
The aim of an integrative review is to provide a comprehensive understanding of a topic. Some types of reviews, such as systematic reviews or qualitative syntheses, are limited to empirical studies using a specific research design. For many areas of nursing, however, diverse sources of information are needed to describe and understand a topic.
The integrative review method is the only approach that allows for the combination of diverse methodologies (for example, experimental and non-experimental research), and has the potential to play a greater role in evidence-based practice for nursing. With respect to the integrative review method, strategies to enhance data collection and ...
Abstract. Introduction: The integrative review is the methodology that provides synthesis of knowledge and applicability of results of significant studies to practice. Objective: To present the phases of an integrative review and the relevant aspects to be taken into account when using this methodological resource. Methods: This study was based ...
Introduction: The integrative review is the methodology that. provides synthesis of knowledge and applicability of results of. significant studies to practice. Objective: T o present the phases ...
The integrative review method is the only approach that allows for the combination of diverse methodologies (for example, experimental and non-experimental research), and has the potential to play a greater role in evidence-based practice for nursing.
In nursing education, the integrative review is a frequent capstone project for graduate students and forms the basis for many doctoral projects. The Integrative review process should be valid, reliable and transparent and this book provides clear guidelines for writing an integrative review for students, educators, clinicians, and researchers.
An integrative review was conducted in five stages: (1) problem identification, with research question definition; (2) literature search; (3) data evaluation, with studies' categorization; (4 ...