The Twelfth International Conference on Grey Literature in Prague in 2010 arrived at the following definition:
"Grey literature stands for manifold document types produced on all levels of government, academics, business and industry in print and electronic formats that are protected by intellectual property rights, of sufficient quality to be collected and preserved by libraries and institutional repositories, but not controlled by commercial publishers; i.e. where publishing is not the primary activity of the producing body."
The term 'grey literature' is used to describe materials not published commercially or indexed by major databases. While GL may be of questionable quality it has been shown to have an impact in research, teaching and learning. Sometimes, GL is the only source of information for specific research questions. While some GL may be published eventually, and may be easier to find, sometimes it never is.
GL may not go through a peer-review process, and its authority must be scrutinized
Between black and white...
|
White' literature |
'Grey' literature | 'Black' literature |
|---|---|---|
| Books | Preprints | Ideas |
| Published journals | e-Prints | Concepts |
| Conference Proceedings | Technical Reports | Thoughts |
| Lectures | ||
| Data sets | ||
| AV media | ||
| Blogs | ||
| Fora |
Giustini, D. Finding the Hard to Finds: Searching for Grey Literature (2012 Update)
Most databases include various types of grey literature along with publisher-controlled literature. If you are interested in searching only for grey literature, consider restricting the "publication type" in your search. These types can include: technical report, dissertation, patent, meeting paper, annual report or government publication, among others.
Conferences papers are a source of current research, best practices and innovations in a research area. If you are unable to get access via the methods below, try contacting the paper's author for a copy.
Multidisciplinary science citation database: specify 'conference' as a search field, or refine your results by 'proceedings paper'
A multidisciplinary abstract and citation database of research literature and web sources. Over 16,500 peer-reviewed titles from more than 4,000 publishers. Includes some full text links. Access Scopus Tutorials online.
Try using Advanced Search to combine your search terms with conference or proceedings etc.
If you have a citation for a conference paper, but cannot find the fulltext, you can submit an interloan request for the paper and we will try to get you a copy.
Here are listed some general sources of grey literature. Some focus on the sciences and health sciences, while others are more general in scope.
Search several databases for economic evaluations, technology assessments and systematic reviews.
Grey Literature Network Service (GreyNet)
“The goal of GreyNet is to facilitate dialog, research, and communication between persons and organisations in the field of grey literature.
“GreyNet further seeks to identify and distribute information on and about grey literature in networked environments.
“Its main activities include the International Conference Series on Grey Literature, the creation and maintenance of web-based resources, a moderated Listserv, a combined Distribution List, The Grey Journal (TGJ), as well as curriculum development in the field of grey literature.”
A search engine for online health science sources. Use the Visual filter to categorise results.
National Technical Information Service
Links to a directory of Open Access Repositories across Australasia with various types of Grey Literature, including data, preprints and thesis
“System for Information on Grey Literature in Europe, is your open access to 700.000 bibliographical references of grey literature (paper) produced in Europe and allows you to export records and locate the documents.
“Examples of grey (gray) literature include technical or research reports, doctoral dissertations, some conference papers, some official publications, and other types of grey literature.
“OpenGrey covers Science, Technology, Biomedical Science, Economics, Social Science and Humanities.”
Access to search engines, directories and databases of patents.
Science.gov searches over 60 databases and over 2,200 scientific websites to provide users with access to more than 200 million pages of authoritative federal science information from the USA including research and development results.
In-depth guide to U.S. Government document resources at the University of Pennsylvania
See our Patents Guide for information about finding patents
Access to data sets from New Zealand government agencies and government-funded projects. (including Local Govt and CRI’s, and Universities)
An initiative that aims to make New Zealand digital content easy to find, share and use. This includes content from government departments, publicly funded organisations, the private sector, and community groups.
New Zealand Information Sources Guide (From University of Otago Library)
This site includes peer-reviewed and other research from universities, polytechnics, and research organisations throughout New Zealand.
are the memory-bank of New Zealand's flora, fauna, and geological and climatic history.( from Crown Research Institutes
An index of New Zealand science papers and reports, provided by Crown Research Institutes and the Royal Society of New Zealand. There are some gaps in content (especially for recent dates), it's best to also search CRI and the Royal Society websites as well)
Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research publications
Plant & Food Research publications
Research repositories are online spaces to store and access research outputs, such as research journal articles and theses. Try searching these sites to find more research:
Research documents produced at universities, polytechnics, and other research institutions throughout New Zealand; formerly KRIS (Kiwi Research Information Service)
Repository for selected research produced at the University of Otago. Includes Book, Book chapters, Journal Articles, Theses, Working Papers and more.
A consolidated searching platform for digital theses and dissertations around the world.
SSRN's objective is to provide worldwide distribution of research to authors and their readers. Any paper an author uploads to SSRN is downloadable for free, worldwide.
To locate and access theses and dissertations produce at Otago, in Aotearoa, or worldwide
Using the Advanced Search combine your search terms with words like 'Thesis' or 'Dissertation'.
The 'Finding' tab of the 'Thesis Information' guide includes links to databases containing theses.
Respository for research, including theses, produced at the University
