1. Conversion of journal citation data for systematic review analysis
David Brennan, MLS, Assistant Librarian, Collection Development/Digital Resources Management
George T. Harrell Health Sciences Library
Problem
In the systematic review process, manipulating citation data resulting from literature searches can be problematic.
Issues
large quantity of citations
inconsistencies in export functions among various reference manager applications
conversion methods that require additional tools or training that may not be available
Need
To reliably convert citation data to a spreadsheet format
does not rely on a specific version of a reference manager
does not require any third-party software or scripting
Solution
Output citation data from the reference manager as a defined citation format (e.g. MLA style), rather than a defined file format (e.g. RIS or BibTex)
Select citations and create bibliography using MLA style. Save to text file.
Import complete, with author, title, and citation separated. Add any additional coding (e.g. PRISMA or MECIR) needed for review process.
Import into Excel as a delimited text file
Use quotation marks as the delimiter (MLA style offsets title in quotes)*
* the text may have "smart" quotes (e.g. opening and closing quotes instead of straight quotes) – these will have to be replaced in order for Excel to delimit properly