Abstract
Objective: Developing the scientific underpinnings of social welfare requires effective and efficient methods of
retrieving relevant items from the increasing volume of research. Method: We compared seven databases by running
the nearest equivalent search on each. The search topic was chosen for relevance to social work practice with
older people. Results: Highest sensitivity was achieved by Medline (52%), Social Sciences Citation Index (46%)
and Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL) (30%). Highest precision was achieved
by AgeInfo (76%), PsycInfo (51%) and Social Services Abstracts (41%). Each database retrieved unique relevant
articles. Conclusions: Comprehensive searching requires the development of information management skills. The
social work profession would benefit from having a dedicated international database with the capability and facilities
of major databases such as Medline, CINAHL, and PsycInfo.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 697-706 |
Number of pages | 10 |
Journal | Research on Social Work Practice |
Volume | 17 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2007 |