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Grey Literature

Searching Grey Literature

It can be difficult to know where to begin - and when to end - a grey literature search. Some considerations when developing a grey literature search strategy include:

  • What kinds of information are you looking for?
    • Clinical trials?
    • Theses and dissertations?
    • Conference posters, papers, or proceedings?
    • Reports?
    • Statistics?
  • Who would publish this type of information?
    • Government agencies (international, national, provincial, municipal?
    • Non-governmental organizations (Cochrane Collection, WHO, Ducks Unlimited?
    • Advocacy groups (CAMH, Canadian Cancer Society, food bank?
    • Academia?
    • Industry?
  • Do you have limits in your criteria for inclusion?
    • preferred publication date(s)?
    • preferred geographic region(s)?
    • preferred language(s)?

A thorough grey literature search should involve a general sweep of the internet. Some tips for web searching are:

  • Restrict content to .org or .gov sites
    • Enter your topic, the use the phrase "site:.org" or "site:.gov"
  • Restrict content to file type
    • Type in your topic and then "filetype:pdf" or "filetype:doc"
  • Use a selection of several search engines in addition to Google, such as:

Help Searching Grey Literature

Grey Literature Resources & Repositories

Searching Grey Lit - Tips 'n Tricks

Grey Lit and Social Media

Social media has become a prominent platform for academic and professional conversation. Consider searching for the social media handles of prominent experts, governing bodies, and associations in your field of research for announcements, debates, and discussion. Check trade association and governing body websites for relevant blogs, Youtube channels and podcasts about your research topic. Check the "how to cite" tab of this subject guide to learn how to cite Facebook and Twitter posts, Blog posts, videos and podcast episodes.