השוואת שיטות

	סקירת ספרות נרטיבית	סינתזה-על איכותנית
תחום	סיינטומטריה	סינתזת ראיות
משפחה	Process / pipeline	Process / pipeline
שנת המקור	Pre-20th century practice; peer-reviewed methodological guidance from 2000s onward	2007
הוגה השיטה	Traditional academic practice; formalized discussion by Green, Johnson & Adams (2006)	Sandelowski & Barroso (2007), Popularized by Thomas & Harden (2008)
סוג	Literature review methodology	Framework
מקור מכונן	Green, B. N., Johnson, C. D., & Adams, A. (2006). Writing narrative literature reviews for peer-reviewed journals: secrets of the trade. Journal of Chiropractic Medicine, 5(3), 101–117.	Thomas, J., & Harden, A. (2008). Methods for the thematic synthesis of qualitative research in systematic reviews. BMC Medical Research Methodology, 8, 45.
כינויים	traditional review, expert review, unsystematic review, narrative synthesis	Qualitative Evidence Synthesis, Thematic Synthesis, Metasynthesis, Qualitative Systematic Review
קשורות	6	2
תקציר	A narrative review is a broad, author-directed synthesis of published literature on a topic, written to summarize, interpret, and contextualize existing knowledge without following the rigorous, pre-registered search and selection protocols that characterize systematic reviews. It draws on the author's expertise to weave disparate sources into a coherent account that identifies themes, debates, and directions for future research.	Qualitative meta-synthesis is a systematic method for synthesizing findings from multiple qualitative research studies (interviews, focus groups, ethnographies) to develop integrated interpretations and theoretical insights. Formalized by Sandelowski and Barroso (2007) and popularized by Thomas and Harden (2008), qualitative meta-synthesis preserves the rich, contextual, interpretive nature of qualitative evidence while enabling broader conclusions across multiple studies. Unlike quantitative meta-analysis, which pools numbers, qualitative meta-synthesis synthesizes themes, meanings, and conceptual insights—answering questions like 'How do cancer patients experience treatment side effects?' or 'What factors shape patient engagement with preventive health programs?' across multiple studies.