CiteSource: An R package for data-driven search strategy development and enhanced evidence synthesis reporting

Area of Science:

• Bibliometrics
• Information Science
• Health Sciences Research

Background:

• Effective evidence synthesis relies on robust search strategies.
• Developing these strategies involves numerous decisions impacting evidence retrieval and outcomes.
• Limited data-driven guidance exists for optimizing search strategy development.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce CiteSource, an R package and Shiny application.
• To support data-driven decision-making in evidence synthesis search strategy development and reporting.
• To enhance the efficiency, rigor, and transparency of literature searching.

Main Methods:

• CiteSource allows users to assign and retain metadata (source, label, string) for citation records.
• It facilitates visual mapping of record set overlaps.
• The package enables data summarization and export of citation records with metadata.

Main Results:

• CiteSource provides tools for optimizing literature source selection.
• It aids in honing search strings and evaluating their effectiveness.
• Outputs support the assessment of literature sources and supplementary search methods.

Conclusions:

• CiteSource empowers evidence synthesizers with data-driven tools for informed decision-making.
• The application improves the efficiency and transparency of search strategy development and reporting.
• It contributes to more rigorous evidence synthesis by optimizing literature searching processes.