GSU Library Research Guides: Writing Systematic Reviews for the Health and Social Sciences: Core Databases

Core Databases to Start With

PubMed This link opens in a new window
This resource is developed and maintained by the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) at the US National Library of Medicine (NLM), and contains citations for biomedical literature from MEDLINE, life science journals, and online books in the fields of life sciences, behavioral sciences, chemical sciences, and bioengineering.
Cochrane Library This link opens in a new window
Evidence-based healthcare information. Includes the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), and Cochrane Clinical Answers.
Embase This link opens in a new window
Embase is a biomedical and pharmacological bibliographic database of published literature designed to support information managers and pharmacovigilance in complying with the regulatory requirements of a licensed drug. Embase contains over 32 million records from over 8,500 currently published journals from 1947 to the present. Embase's international coverage expands across biomedical journals from 95 countries.
CINAHL Plus with Full Text This link opens in a new window
CINAHL (Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature) provides more than 370 nursing and allied health full-text, non-open access journals indexed in the CINAHL database. Additional materials include full-text evidence-based care sheets, quick lessons and continuing education modules.
MEDLINE with Full Text This link opens in a new window
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Combined with the National Library of Medicine's bibliographic database this database offers information related to the fields of medicine, nursing, dentistry, veterinary medicine, the health care system, and preclinical sciences.

Campbell Collaboration Library
The Campbell Collaboration produces systematic reviews of the effects of social interventions within the areas of education, crime and justice, social welfare and international development.
PubMed Health
PubMed Health specializes in reviews of clinical effectiveness research, with easy-to-read summaries for consumers as well as full technical reports. (*PubMed Health will be discontinued on October 31, 2018. Content will be redistributed to other NLM resources*)

Other Databases to Try

Academic Search Complete This link opens in a new window
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A scholarly, multi-disciplinary database providing indexing and abstracts for thousands of journals and other publications. PDF content dates back to 1887.
Ageline This link opens in a new window
This database focuses exclusively on issues of aging and the population of people aged 50 years and older. Geared to professionals in aging-related fields, such as health care professionals, social workers, and caregivers, as well as consumers. Direct Opt Out Link
AGRICOLA This link opens in a new window
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A database of agricultural literature created by the National Agricultural Library of the USDA from 1970 to present.
Biological Abstracts This link opens in a new window
One of the premier indexes of the biological literature. Covers the spectrum of life sciences. Subjects covered include biology, biochemistry, botany, biotechnology, preclinical and experimental medicine, agriculture, veterinary medicine, and zoology.
Business Source Complete This link opens in a new window
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This database provides full text for scholarly business journals and other sources, covering all areas related to business. Direct Opt Out Link.
ERIC (EBSCO) This link opens in a new window
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Provides extensive access to educational related literature. Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education. 1966 - current.

Europe PMC
Europe PMC is a repository, providing access to worldwide life sciences articles, books, patents and clinical guidelines. Europe PMC provides links to relevant records in databases such as Uniprot, European Nucleotide Archive (ENA), Protein Data Bank Europe (PDBE) and BioStudies.
"We have over 5 million more abstracts than PubMed."

Google Scholar This link opens in a new window
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Google Scholar is a freely accessible web search engine that indexes the full text or metadata of scholarly literature across an array of publishing formats and disciplines.

JBI Database of Systematic Reviews and Implementation Reports
The JBI Database of Systematic Reviews and Implementation Reports is a refereed, online journal that publishes systematic review protocols and systematic reviews of healthcare research following the JBI methodology and undertaken by the Joanna Briggs Institute and its international collaborating centers and groups.
PEDro (Physiotherapy Evidence Database)
PEDro is a free database of over 15,000 randomized trials, systematic reviews and clinical practice guidelines in physiotherapy. PEDro is produced by the Centre for Evidence-Based Physiotherapy at The George Institute for International Health.

APA PsycInfo This link opens in a new window
APA PsycInfo is unmatched as a resource for locating scholarly research findings in psychology and related fields across a host of academic disciplines.

Social Services Abstracts
Provides references and abstracts of research on social work, human services, and related areas.

Social Work Abstracts This link opens in a new window
Offers indexing and abstracting of social work and human services journals dating back to 1965, covering theory, practice, areas of service, and subjects such as therapy, education, human services, addictions, child and family welfare, mental health, and civil and legal rights.
Sociological Collection This link opens in a new window
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This database provides information on all areas of sociology, including social behavior, human tendencies, interaction, relationships, community development, culture and social structure.

TRIP (Turning Research Into Practice) Database
Trip is a clinical search engine designed to allow users to quickly and easily find and use high-quality research evidence to support their practice and/or care.

Web of Science This link opens in a new window
Web of Science provides seamless access to the Science Citation Expanded, Social Sciences Citation Index, and Arts & Humanities Citation Index as well as Book Citation Index and Conference Proceedings Citation Index.