Scoping reviews aim to identify and map the available evidence on a given topic. They are particularly useful for exploring the breadth of the literature, clarifying concepts, and identifying gaps in the research.

This article outlines how to determine if a scoping review is appropriate for your research question, describes the methodology for conducting one, and provides resources to support the process.

Why conduct a scoping review?

Scoping reviews are commonly used to:

• Examine emerging topics or types of evidence within a field. 
• Clarify key concepts and definitions in the literature. 
• Identify gaps in existing research.
• Serve as a precursor to a systematic review. 
• Investigate how research is conducted (study designs, data collection, analysis, and reporting). 

Is a scoping review right for you? 

Before starting your project, determine whether a scoping review fits your research question based on the points below. 

A scoping review requires these elements:

• A comprehensive analysis of all relevant literature on a topic. 
• A timeline of 6 to 12 months, with at least two independent reviewers.
• A team with expertise in the topic area, scoping review methodology, and advanced literature searching.

Guidance

Scoping reviews minimize bias through structured and transparent methods. There are two types of guidance to follow: 

Methodology — refers to predefined, documented steps that ensure the openness of the research process and duplicability.  Chapter 10 of the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) Manual for Evidence Synthesis can be consulted for comprehensive methodological guidance.

Reporting Standards — refers to the guidelines established to strengthen the credibility of a literature review structure. Scoping reviews should be reported according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) checklist.  This checklist ensures complete reporting of key elements of your review, including methods, results, and interpretation.

Starting a scoping review

Preliminary topic investigation

Conducting a preliminary topic investigation is essential to understand the scope of the literature and refine your research question. 

This process typically involves:

• Searching relevant databases, such as PubMed and Web of Science, to identify existing studies.
• Reviewing prior scoping reviews to understand how similar topics have been approached.
•  Applying the FINER (Feasible, Interesting, Novel, Ethical, Relevant) criteria to assess the feasibility of the project.

Research framework

 The JBI Manual recommends using the PCC framework to define key elements of the research question: 

Population – the group or participants of interest

Concept – the primary topic or phenomenon being examined

Context – the setting or environment relevant to the research

Not all research questions will fit into such a framework. Another way to break down a research question is to separate your question into a few search concepts.

Predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria

Inclusion criteria establish which characteristics of a study will determine whether it is included in the analyzed results. Refer to Chapter 10 of the JBI Manual for further guidance. 

Exclusion criteria establish what will disqualify a study from being included in the analyzed results. Such exclusions could include a date range or study type. Since scoping reviews aim to mitigate bias, any aspects that are excluded will require documented justification for the decision. 

Search strategy

• Choose 4-8 databases to search. 
• Create a systematic and reproducible search strategy that balances comprehensiveness with relevance. 
• Refine the search strategy with team members or get advice from an Informationist at the Health Sciences Library. 

Registering a protocol

It’s important to develop and register a protocol to help prevent duplication of effort with other researchers. Guidance for developing a protocol can be found in  Chapter 10 of the JBI’s Manual for Evidence Synthesis.  Once developed, the protocol can be registered in publicly accessible repositories such as:

• Open Science Framework
• Figshare

Next steps of a scoping review 

Once a protocol is registered, a scoping review typically follows these steps:

1. Identify relevant studies and deduplicate records using a citation management tool.
2. Screen title and abstracts based on inclusion and exclusion criteria using at least two independent reviewers to ensure accuracy.
3. Review full texts of the remaining literature to assess their eligibility in the scoping review.
4. Collect, summarize, and report the results.

Conclusion

Overall, when adhering to methodological guidance and best practices, a scoping review is an effective way to identify gaps in the research and examine the existing evidence on a topic. 

Resources

The JBI Scoping Review Network provides publications, video tutorials, protocol templates, and opportunities to connect with other researchers conducting scoping reviews.

Open Science Framework has videos and articles to assist you with registering your scoping review protocol. Figshare also has a user guides archive with tutorials on using the platform.