A Primer on Conducting Scoping Reviews: Purpose, Guidelines, and Resources

A scoping review is a systematic approach to synthesizing existing knowledge related to a topic or question, including past research findings, key concepts and theories, types of available evidence (e.g., quantitative, qualitative, or mixed methods), and gaps in the literature (Arksey & O’Malley, 2003; Levac et al., 2010). It is a useful tool for providing scholars and the field with a comprehensive understanding of an issue and, by highlighting limitations of the extant literature, a direction for future studies. Scoping reviews can be particularly helpful to doctoral students and emerging scholars who must have a strong understanding of the extent and limitations of existing knowledge related to their research interests. Social work scholars may find scoping reviews more suitable than systematic reviews or meta-analyses if they explore relatively understudied topics and populations (i.e., marginalized populations), or topics and populations that have been examined primarily with qualitative research methods. Additionally, social work scholars can use scoping reviews to identify disparities in regard to which populations are studied and, relatedly, the extent and limitations of available knowledge related to marginalized populations. Despite the numerous benefits of scoping reviews, they are underutilized in social work relative to other disciplines (Pham et al., 2014).

In this workshop, participants will gain the knowledge and skills they need to conduct a scoping review. They will also be provided with resources they can utilize after the workshop as questions and challenges arise. The workshop covers four main topics: 1) the purpose and benefits of a scoping review and how it differs from literature and systematic reviews; 2) the recommended steps for conducting a scoping review (Arksey & O’Malley, 2005; Levac et al., 2010), as well as the presenters’ advice based off their own experiences and challenges conducting scoping reviews; 3) the resources available to help conduct a scoping review (i.e., software programs, PRISMA protocol, JBI scoping review network, and seminal articles); and 4) the limitations of scoping reviews. To enhance learning, examples of scoping reviews conducted by the presenters and other scholars will be examined and the presenters will briefly demonstrate how to use a popular software program designed for scoping and systematic reviews (i.e., Covidence). Participants will be provided with a template for developing a scoping review protocol and, at various points throughout the workshop, will apply what they learn by developing a protocol for a research question of their choosing (one will be provided if necessary). They will also share their protocol in small groups to receive feedback and suggestions from their peers.