Preparation is the starting point of any SLR and is critical to the success of the review. It involves several key steps, including selecting the research question, defining the scope of the review, identifying relevant databases and search terms, and defining the inclusion and exclusion criteria for the studies.
The first step in preparation is selecting a clear and focused research question. This question should be relevant to the scholar's field of study and should guide the scope and direction of the review. The research question should be specific enough to allow for a comprehensive review, but broad enough to generate meaningful results.
Steps for selecting the research question for a systematic literature review (SLR)
| Step | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Identify the Research Area | Computer Science, Computer Graphics, Artificial Intelligence |
| 2 | Determine the Research Purpose | Answer a specific question, identify trends, compare and contrast different approaches |
| 3 | Identify the Research Gap | Fill gaps in existing research, contribute new information or insights to the field |
| 4 | Formulate the Research Question | "What are the most effective algorithms for image recognition in computer vision?" |
| 5 | Refine the Research Question | "What are the most effective deep learning algorithms for image recognition in computer vision and how do they compare to traditional computer vision algorithms?" |
By following these steps, you can select a focused and relevant research question for your SLR in computer science.
Defining the scope of the review is the next stage after defining the research issue. This entails stating the length of time the review covered, the categories of studies it included, and the locations of those studies. For instance, the review's scope can cover papers with a specified study design, conducted in a particular nation or region, and published between 2000 and 2020.
Steps for defining the scope of a systematic literature review (SLR)
| Step | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Identify Keywords | Image recognition, computer vision, algorithms, deep learning, computer graphics, artificial intelligence |
| 2 | Determine the Time Frame | Latest 5 years, last 10 years, all time |
| 3 | Choose Relevant Databases | IEEE Xplore, ACM Digital Library, Science Direct |
| 4 | Define Inclusion and Exclusion Criteria | Inclusion: Peer-reviewed journal articles, Exclusion: Books, conference papers |
| 5 | Specify the Language | English only |
By following these steps, you can define a clear and specific scope for your SLR, which will help to ensure that your results are relevant and meaningful.
Finding the pertinent databases and search terms that will be utilized to find papers for the review is the next stage. Utilizing academic databases like Google Scholar, Scopus, and Web of Science as well as additional sources like conference transcripts and grey literature may be necessary for this. To achieve a thorough search, the search phrases should be properly picked and pertinent to the research subject.
Steps for identifying relevant databases and search terms for a systematic literature review (SLR)
| Step | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Choose Relevant Databases | IEEE Xplore, ACM Digital Library, Science Direct |
| 2 | Identify Keywords | Image recognition, computer vision, algorithms, deep learning, computer graphics, artificial intelligence |
| 3 | Use Boolean Operators | AND, OR, NOT |
| 4 | Use Truncation and Wildcard Characters | *, ?, ! |
| 5 | Refine the Search | Add synonyms, eliminate irrelevant results, add constraints (such as date, language) |
By following these steps, you can effectively search for relevant literature in your field, which will serve as the foundation for your SLR.
Defining the inclusion and exclusion standards for the studies must then be established. Choosing things like the study population, publication date, and study design type may be necessary for this. Only high-quality studies should be included in the review, and the inclusion criteria should be stringent enough to achieve this while still being open-ended enough to allow for a thorough assessment of the literature.
Summarizing the steps for defining the inclusion and exclusion criteria for a systematic literature review (SLR)
| Step | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Determine the Purpose of the Review | To evaluate the current state-of-the-art in deep learning for image recognition |
| 2 | Define the Scope of the Review | Peer-reviewed journal articles, published in English, in the last 5 years |
| 3 | Establish Inclusion Criteria | Must relate to deep learning for image recognition |
| 4 | Establish Exclusion Criteria | Conference papers, books, articles not related to image recognition |
| 5 | Evaluate the Relevance of Each Study | Based on inclusion and exclusion criteria, determine if the study should be included in the review |
By doing these actions, you can make sure that the studies you include in your SLR are pertinent to the review's goal and scope. This will aid in generating reliable and insightful results.
In summary, an SLR's preparation phase is essential to its success. Researchers can make sure that their SLR is well-defined, thorough, and relevant by following these crucial stages, and they can also make sure that they are able to make useful deductions about the existing state of knowledge in their area of interest.
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