Slrtool: A Tool to Support Collaborative Systematic Literature Reviews

Background: Systematic Literature Reviews (SLRs) are used in a number of fields to produce unbiased accounts of specific research topics. The SLR process is particularly well documented and regulated in the medical field, where it is accepted as the standard mechanism to assess, for instance, the benefits of drugs and treatments. SLRs and meta-analysis techniques are increasingly being used in other fields as well, from Social Sciences to Software Engineering. Aim: This paper presents the SLRTool tool an open source, web-based, multi-user tool that supports the SLR process for a range of research areas. The tool is available at http://www.slrtool.org and is developed using a modeldriven approach to enable its adaptation to different disciplines. Method: The functionality of the tool is presented in the context of support for various phases of the SLR process. The use of the tool is illustrated by means of a simulated SLR aiming to map out existing research in the domain of Enterprise Architecture (EA). Results: Details of the SLRTool tool are provided. The tool and its source code are available under an open source license. Commentary on the use of the tool and potential additional benefits are discussed, for example, the role of the tool in nonmedical meta-studies. Conclusion: The SLRTool tool supports all phases of the SLR process and lends itself to creating and supporting research communities geared to SLR oriented activities. In particular, the tool could be suitable for the novice researcher community.