Consensus offers a powerful set of AI-enabled search filters that help you refine your searches and return more relevant research.

You can filter results by:

When the paper was published
Whether the paper is open access
Number of citations a paper has
Journal rank
Study design and methodology
Population studied (human or animal)
Sample size
Study duration
Publisher
Field of study
Country where the study took place

These filters give you a more granular way to choose the qualities of the research you want returned. Using filters can make your search results more relevant and tailored to your needs.

How to use Filters

Start a new search: https://consensus.app/
Click the Filter button with three dashes
Choose the filters you’d like to apply
Click 'Apply filter'

Filter + Badge Definitions:

General

Publish year: Select the year you would like your search to be filtered from.
Journal rank: SJR quartile rating
- Scimago Journal Rank measures the influence of journals within a domain. Scores are divided into quartiles, with Q1 being the most influential and Q4 being the least.
  - Q1: most influential
  - Q2: moderate influence
  - Q3: moderate influence
  - Q4: least influential
Citations: This filters the number of citations that a paper has. A high citation count does not necessarily mean the finding is more valid, but it can be an indicator of a paper’s influence.
Exclude Preprints: This filter removes preprint papers that have not yet been peer-reviewed, helping you focus on finalized, published research.
Open access: This filter allows you to see results that have access to the full text.

Methodology

Design:

Experimental (4):
- RCT: A randomized controlled trial is an experiment that includes a control or hold-out group that is randomly assigned.
- Non-RCT Exp: A non-randomized experiment is an experiment where an intervention is given, but participants are not randomly assigned to a control or hold-out group.
- Bench Exp: A bench experiment is a laboratory-based study, often conducted outside of a clinical or field setting.
- In-Vitro Exp: An in vitro experiment is conducted outside a living organism, such as in a test tube, culture dish, or other controlled lab environment.
Observational (9):
- Field Study: A field study observes or collects data in a real-world setting rather than a controlled laboratory environment.
- Cross-Sectional Study: A cross-sectional study examines data from a population at a single point in time.
- Cohort Study: A cohort study follows a group of people, animals, or other subjects over time to study outcomes or exposures.
- Longitudinal / Panel Study: A longitudinal or panel study collects repeated observations from the same subjects over time.
- Case-Control Study: A case-control study compares subjects with a particular outcome or condition to those without it, often looking backward to identify possible risk factors.
- Case Study: A case study is an in-depth analysis of a specific person, group, event, organization, or situation.
- Case Report: A case report describes a specific individual or small group, usually in a medical or clinical context.
- Interview Study: An interview study collects qualitative data from participants through interviews.
- Mixed Methods Study: A mixed methods study uses both quantitative and qualitative research methods.
Evidence Synthesis (3):
- Systematic Review: A systematic review is a review of existing research on a subject that uses explicit, systematic inclusion criteria.
- Meta-Analysis: A meta-analysis is a “study of studies” where authors use standardized methods to analyze data from multiple studies.
- Literature Review: A literature review is a review of existing research on a topic, usually without the explicit inclusion criteria used in systematic reviews.
Other (3):
- Simulation Study: A simulation study uses a model or computational approach to study a system, process, or outcome.
- Commentary: A commentary is an article that provides perspective, interpretation, or discussion rather than presenting original experimental results.
- Historical Analysis: A historical analysis examines past events, records, or developments to understand patterns, causes, or context.

Study Details

Setting:
- Human: Filters for studies conducted with human participants.
- Animal: Filters for studies conducted with animals.
Sample size: The number of participants, subjects, or observations included in first-hand experiments or observational studies.
Duration: Filter for the length of time the study or experiment ran, such as days, weeks, months, or years.
- This is a helpful filter for:
  - Clinical Trials: to compare short-term efficacy with long-term safety of medical treatments or interventions
  - Nutrition: to find studies on the effects of dietary changes over days, weeks, or months
  - Environmental Toxicology: to compare short-term and long-term exposure impacts of chemicals or pollutants
Controlled studies only: This toggle filters for first-hand experiments or observational studies that include a control, placebo, or hold-out group.

Sources

Publisher:

The Publisher filter lets you narrow results by the publisher or publishing organization associated with the paper.
There are 44 publisher options available, including major academic publishers, university presses, professional societies, and journal networks such as Elsevier, Wiley, Springer Nature, Oxford University Press, IEEE, PLOS, BMJ, JAMA, NEJM, and more.

Fields of study

Filter your results for the field of study
- Agricultural and Food Sciences, Art, Biology, Business, Chemistry, Computer Science, Economics, Education, Engineering, Environmental Science, Geography, Geology, History, Law, Linguistics, Materials Science, Mathematics, Medicine, Philosophy, Physics, Political Science, Psychology, and/ or Sociology.