Unit I.

Social Research and Making Research Sociological

Literature
Review

Dr Mani Ram Banjade

Dr Eak Rana
Probable questions

1. Describe the meaning of Literature review. Describe the

major sources of literature review that are commonly
undertaken by the researchers in the field.
2. What is literature review? Describe the stages of literature
review. How to conduct a literature review?
3. Mention the objectives of literature review? What are the
sources of literature?
4. Write short notes (2014) – 1. Interview 2. Literature Review
5. What are the basic types of literature review? Why
literature review is important in social research?
6. Write notes on i) Research ethics ii) scientific community
7. Features/characteristics of a good literature review
8. Ethical Issues Involving Research Participants
What is Literature Review???

A literature review is a critical synthesis and

summary of published research literature topic
under consideration for research. The purpose is to
create familiarity with current thinking and research
on a particular/chosen topic, and may justify future
research into a previous overlook or understudied
area.
Objectives of literature review
(L.W. Neuman, 2007)

1. To demonstrate a familiarity with a body of knowledge/foundation of knowledge and

establish credibility of the Research Topic

2. To show the areas/path of prior research and how a current Research is linked to it –
outlines a direction of research

3. To integrate and summarize what is known in selected research topic (synthesize different
results/findings of prior research – similarities, differences)

4. To learn from others and stimulate new ideas/insights- identify gaps in research in existing
research (major questions left/unanswered from prior research) or To place your own
research within the context of Existing Literature/Research making a case of why further
study is needed.

5. Clarify concepts and theoretical study

6. Develop research methodology (identify relevant variables and establish their

relationships)
What does literature review do ?
• It surveys the literature in your chosen area
of study
• It synthesizes the information in that
literature into a summary
• It critically analyzes the information
gathered by identifying gaps in current
knowledge; by showing limitations of
theories and points of view; and by
formulating areas for further research and
reviewing areas of controversy
• It presents the literature in an organized
Types of Literature review (L.W. Neuman, 2007)

• Context review
• Historical review
• Integrative review -
• Methodological review
• Self-study review
• Theoretical review
• Previous Studies Review

Vary in SCOPE and DEPTH

Types of Literature review (L.W. Neuman, 2007)
Type of Lit
Key features
review
A common type of review in which the author links a specific study to a
larger body of knowledge. It often appears at the beginning of a research
Context review report and introduces the study by situating it within a broader framework
and showing how it continue or builds on a developing line of thought or
study.
A specialized review in which the author traces an issue over time. It can be
Historical review merged with a theoretical or methodological review to show how concept,
theory, or research method developed.
A common type of review in which the author presents and summarizes the
Integrative current state of knowledge on a topic, highlighting agreement with a
review context review or may published as an independent article as a service to
other researchers.
A specialized type of integrative review in which the author compares and
Methodological evaluates the relative methodological strength of various studies and shows
review how different methodologies (e.g. research designs, samples) account for
different results.

Self-study A review in which an author demonstrates his or her familiarity with a subject
1. Theoretical review
• A review in which the author presents several Theories or
Concepts focused on the same topic and compares
them on the basis of Assumptions, Logical consistency
and scope of explanation.
• Find out types of theories available regarding the
topic
• Identify the relationship between the existing theories
(e.g. for social change – Marxism and other related
theories will be reviewed)
• Theoretical review helps to determine the variables
and opens the door for testing theory and hypotheses
(new theory)
• The findings of review helps to develop a theory
2. Review of Previous Studies
• Identify the existing literature regarding the research topic

• Identify the methods used in the research, findings and conclusion

of previous research/study related to the topic being studied

• Logical evaluation of the central theme of the literature.

Understand the main points and arguments of the research
thereby identify the similarities and inconsistencies of the research

• Main objective is to identify the gap of the previous

studies/research of selected topic

• Locate your own research within the context of existing Literature

related to your topic – create significance your research
Where to find Literatures? (Neuman, 2007)
1. Scholarly Journals- Peer reviewed Published articles
Scholarly journal articles, Special issue -thematic (specific), Mix of
research studies, theoretical essays, literature reviews
2. Scholarly Books (Three types – (I) designed for teaching
purpose, collection of reports, II. Designed for scholars and may
gather collection of journal articles – original research, theoretical
essays, III. Annual research books- reports on studies (hybrids
between scholarly journals and collection of articles.)
3. Dissertations /Theses
4. Government documents – Reports, Policy and legislative
instruments – law, act, regulation, strategies statistical surveys
5. Policy reports and Presented Papers,
6. Periodicals (non-research publication) - Newspapers, opinion
magazines
Access to literature
Sources: Libraries, Indexes and Electronic
Database, Publishers website,
Abstracts/Reviews, the Internet, and
Supervisors/professors
Social research literatures through INTERNET
• Scopus
• Google Scholar
• ResearchGate
• JSTOR
How to conduct a Literature Review??
Define and Refine a Topic Research Questions
• What are you looking to explore? • Write specific questions to guide your
• Example: The impact of service-learning research
curricula on undergraduate university • Example: How has service-learning
students. curricula impacted undergrads in
Tribhuvan University since 2005?

Design a Search and Locate Research Analyze and Evaluate the reports
Reports • Assess how each source relates to other
Find relevant literature sources: Articles research within the field/topic
in Scholarly Reports, Scholarly Books, • Group sources by theme, topic, or
Government Documents, Dissertations, methodology.
Policy reports and presented papers, and • Critically evaluate research what to note and
Periodicals (newspaper) record, organize notes

Thesis Statement Write Literature Review

Your thesis statement should contain the • Use an introduction, body/middle (body
overarching focus for your lit. review and part) and a conclusion
the main supporting points you found in • Include summary, analysis, synthesis and
the literature evaluation – appropriately
How to conduct a Literature review??
1. Define and refine a Research Topic
2. Framing a research questions (Problem Formulation)
3. Locate Research and Search the relevant Literature (Literature
Search)
4. Data evaluation – determine which literature makes a significant
contribution to the understanding of the topic (Take notes, what to
record, organize Notes)- Executive summary, conclusion, discussion-
then whole paper.
5. Writing literature review is like an essay- connected by threads of
evidences of Essay. Organization of sub-topics - are presented in a
logical order starting with the most prominent or significant and
moving to the least significant
5. Analysis and interpretation – discuss the findings and conclusion of
pertinent literature (similarities, inconsistencies)
Iterative process – rethink, refine and rework
Strategies of the Literature Review

• Summarize the main ideas of the article,

arguments, positions and findings.
• Note the overall critique the contribution of the
material and overall effectiveness of the field
• Identification of similarities, contradiction, and
inconsistence among articles

• Preview the article/literature (how to select articles)

– Title of article, abstract, opening sentence of article in
introduction section, conclusion and headings
Strategies of Literature review

Write all the essential points accurately in a clear and

logical manner in your own words (paraphrasing)
Structure of Literature review
1. Introduction

• Define your topic, and provide an appropriate context for

reviewing the literature
• Establish you reasons –i.e. point of view – for reviewing
the literature
• Explain the organization –i.e. sequences – of the review
• State the scope of review i.e. what is included and not
included
• Thesis statement
2. Middle/Main body

• Organize the literature according to common

themes
• Provide insights into the relation between your
chosen topic and wider subject area
• Organization and presentation of sub-topics in a
logical order in way to move from a general,
wider view of the literature being reviewed to the
specific focus of your research topic.
3. Conclusion
• Summarize the important aspect of the existing
body of literature
• Evaluate the current state of the literature reviewed
• Identify significant flaws or gaps in existing
knowledge
• Outlines areas for future study
• Link your research to existing knowledge

The conclusion will summarize the main findings,

make clear how this review of the literature supports
(or not) the research to follow, and may point the
direction for further research
Connecting the structures
1. Thesis statement:
An opinion sentence that the whole essay is about. A thesis
statement (the main point of a whole essay or lit review)
is usually found at the End of Introduction. A thesis
statement previews the SUBJECT and Introduces the
Topic that will be discussed in the Essay/Literature
Review.
• Helps to let the reader know what the purpose or main
idea of the Essay is .
• Use a path STATEMENT to refer to Supporting Points
that you will be using in Main Body.
2. Topic sentence:
A topic sentence (the main point of a paragraph) is the
sentence that Introduces each Topic as it is discussed within
its own Paragraph. Normally, comes as first sentence of each
paragraph. Each topic sentence is supported by supporting
examples and evidences.
• Helps to the Author to stay Focused
• Helps to let the reader know what points you will focus on
in a paragraph
• Connect your paragraphs to your thesis or the main idea of
the paper/essay/lit review topic. So a strong set of topic
sentences will work together to support a THESIS
(Middle/Main Body)
• A good topic sentence of a paragraph contains two
elements: the Topic and Controlling idea.
Example of Topic (the Subject of the
Paragraph) and Controlling Ideas (this
limits the topic, and shows the reader how
the writer feels about the topic/how the
writer will limit the topic):
Topic Sentence: There are many reasons why
pollution in Kathmandu is the worst in the
world.
The topic is "pollution in Kathmandu is the
worst in the world" and the controlling idea is
"many reasons."
Example of Topic and Controlling Ideas:

Topic Sentence: To be an effective College

Principal requires certain characteristics.

The topic is "To be an effective College

Principal" and the controlling idea is "certain
characteristics."
Example of Topic and Controlling Ideas:

Topic Sentence: There are many possible

contributing factors to global warming.

The topic is "global warming" and the

controlling idea is "contributing factors."
Example of Topic and Controlling Ideas:

Topic Sentence: Graduating from high school is important

for many different reasons.

The topic is "graduating from high school" and the

controlling idea is "many different reasons.
Example of Topic and Controlling Ideas:

Topic Sentence: It is important to be ready before buying a

house.

The topic is "buying a house" and the controlling idea is it's

"important to be ready.
Example of Topic and Controlling Ideas:
•Topic Sentence: Having a first child is difficult because of the
significant adjustments in your life.

•Topic Sentence: Remodeling a kitchen successfully requires

research and a good eye.

•The topic is "having a first child" and the controlling idea is

"significant adjustments in your life."

•The topic is "remodeling a kitchen" and the controlling idea

is "requires research and a good eye."
Thesis statement
According to Steward (2004) a good lit review look
like
• Comprehensive: Evidence should be gathered from all relevant
sources.
• Fully referenced: allowing others to follow the pat of of the author to
the paper's conclusion.
• Selective: using appropriate search strategies to find the key evidence
• Relevant: focusing on pertinent data
• A Synthesis of key themes and ideas
• Balanced: between different ideas and opinions
• Critical: in its appraisal of the literature
• Analytical: developing new ideas and understanding from the
evidence
• Clear organizational structure – Transition between sub-topics,
transition between sections and paragraph (Topic/Focus Sentence and
Thesis statement).
Key features of lit review

• It is not a survey of every single thing that’s ever been

written about your topic.
• It is not a descriptive list. It is not a book by book and
article by article and research reports with a summary of
findings of each.
• It must be defined by a guiding concept i.e. essay question,
research objective. Should be organized common findings
or arguments together
• It must tell the reader what knowledge and ideas have been
established and agreed in your area and outline their
strengths and weaknesses.
Key points to remember in Literature
Review

• Narrow the Topic

• Be selective - Consider Whether your sources are
current and Relevant – Thematic, mythological or
chronological
• Use Evidence
• Use Quotes carefully (citation) (Plagiarism)
• Summarize and Synthesize
• Keep your Own Voice (Paraphrasing)
• Cite authors even your Paraphrase
Citation and Referencing

• In-text citation
• Reference
• American Psychological Association-
APA Style
Ethics of Scientific community

• Scientific misconduct
• Research fraud
• Plagiarism
• Unethical but legal
• Power – Relationship between the researcher and
subjects or employees-assistants involves power and
trust
Ethical Issues Involving Research Participants
1. Origin of research participants Protections
2. Physical Harm: Psychological Abuse, and Legal Jeopardy
1. Physical harm
2. Psychological abuse, stress, or loss of self-esteem
3. Legal harm
3. Deception
4. Informed consent
1. Covert observation
2. Special population and New Inequalities
5. Privacy, Anonymity and Confidentiality
6. Participants' information as Private Property
7. Mandated protection of Research Participants
Ethics and the Sponsors of Research

1. Whistle –blowing
2. Arriving on particular findings
3. Limits on how to conduct studies
4. Suppressing findings
5. Concealing the Ture sponsors

• Feminist Communication Research Ethics