Steps For A Literature Review

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Crafting a literature review can be a challenging task for many individuals.

It requires meticulous
research, critical analysis, and effective synthesis of existing literature on a particular topic. Here are
the steps involved in creating a comprehensive literature review:

1. Define the Scope: Clearly outline the boundaries of your literature review by identifying the
specific research question or topic you want to explore.
2. Conduct a Systematic Search: Utilize academic databases, libraries, and online resources to
gather relevant scholarly articles, books, and other sources related to your topic.
3. Evaluate Sources: Assess the credibility, relevance, and quality of the gathered literature to
ensure that it contributes meaningfully to your review.
4. Organize the Literature: Categorize the collected sources based on themes, methodologies, or
key concepts to facilitate the synthesis process.
5. Analyze and Synthesize: Critically analyze each source and identify common themes, trends,
and gaps in the existing literature. Synthesize the findings to construct a coherent narrative.
6. Write the Review: Structure your literature review by incorporating an introduction, body
paragraphs discussing key findings, and a conclusion summarizing the main insights.
7. Revise and Edit: Review your literature review for clarity, coherence, and accuracy. Make
necessary revisions to refine your arguments and strengthen your writing.

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Finally, don’t forget to tie your previous work to the academic knowledge that is currently available.
For example, in Nursing: what is current research on obesity and why is it significant to nursing and
health sciences. It is useful when emphasizing the methodologies used by researchers and their
implications for the findings. You've learned what a literature review is all about. I am doing two
papers on my final year thesis, and I must stay I feel very confident to face both headlong after
reading this article. You need to follow the below-mentioned steps, to write a literature review:
Outline the purpose behind the literature review Search relevant literature Examine and assess the
relevant resources Discover connections by drawing deep insights from the resources Structure
planning to write a good literature review 1. Faculty research interests areas vary widely, so do some
research on their past publications. A literature review is a document or section of a document that
collects key sources on a topic and discusses those sources in conversation with each other (also
called synthesis ). Chronological Approach This approach organizes your review based on the
temporal progression of events, theories, or studies. Like other forms of academic writing, your
literature review should take this format: It's an overview and evaluation of what has been found,
explored, and written on the topic of a given. Purpose: It serves to provide a comprehensive
overview of the current state of knowledge within a particular field. Literature review is a
mandatory part of any research project. You can use our free APA Reference Generator for quick,
correct, consistent citations. A literature review is a thorough review and analysis of the literature
available in a chosen or given subject area. How to create an effective Abstract (5 steps and
examples) Categories ABNT norms APA norm Bibliography and Citations General tips Scientific
methodology Writing tips FASTFORMAT Automatic text formatting in ABNT, APA, Vancouver
standards and various journal and conference models. Furthermore, they provide information on
which researchers are active in specific fields, which can be useful for tracking down their other
work. These may be “gaps in the literature” that you might explore in your own study. For each
publication, ask yourself: What question or problem is the author addressing. Lisa Eblen, MLIS,
AHIP Research Symposium Naval Hospital Pensacola September 2011. A chronological compilation
of studies The reason for conducting a literature review is to: Literature Reviews: An Overview for
Graduate Students While this 9-minute video from NCSU is geared toward graduate students, it is
useful for anyone conducting a literature review. Let’s do a quick recap of the key takeaways: It is
essential to understand the WHY of the literature review before you read or write anything. Don't
worry! This blog is your guide for writing a literature review. When you find a useful book or article,
you can check the bibliography to find other relevant sources. A search strategy helps prevent that,
by using punctuation and keywords to make the database understand exactly what you want. Student
A: Smith (2000) concludes that personal privacy in their living quarters is the most important factor
in nursing home residents' perception of their autonomy. It should also include: The research topic
and your motivation behind selecting it A one-sentence thesis statement An explanation of the kinds
of literature featured in the review Summary of what you've learned Conclusions you drew from the
literature you reviewed Potential implications and future scope for research Here's an example of the
abstract of a literature review Is a literature review written in the past tense. These are useful,
particularly for current information. Work shop of your rough draft Prep Assignment for Next Class
Peer Critique. You have some chance to do this in your introduction in an article, but the literature
review section gives a more extended opportunity to establish the conversation in the way you would
like your readers to see it. A solution can be to involve a set of complementary coauthors: some
people are excellent at mapping what has been achieved, some others are very good at identifying
dark clouds on the horizon, and some have instead a knack at predicting where solutions are going to
come from.
Depending on the length of your literature review, you might want to divide the body into
subsections. It deserves capitals, because it is truly one of the beasts of academic writing. Decide on
the number of articles you want to read, the recentness of these articles, and how comprehensive
these are. 3. Go for reliable data sources: An important step in writing a good literature review is
collecting data. A literature review is a comprehensive examination and analysis of existing literature
and scholarly works on a specific subject or research topic. Acknowledging Limitations: It helps you
in acknowledging the limitations of your study and shaping it accordingly. She is majorly involved in
developing and reviewing online content plans that engage and resonate with audiences. You could
also use a reference manager like Paperpile to automatically save, manage, and cite your references.
But few scientists are trained in how to write a review — or in what constitutes an excellent one.
Identifies critical gaps and points of disagreement. Does it really match up with what you're trying
to find out. In these cases, it is necessary to read the introduction and conclusion. For this you have
to reflect and try to answer the following questions: Is the research area mature enough, with a lot of
published studies. Do a literature search find out what has been written about your topic. Literature
reviews are set up similarly to other academic texts, with an introduction, a main body, and a
conclusion. The literature represents background and research developments related to a specific
research question, interpreted and analyzed by you in a synthesized way. While focus is an important
feature of a successful review, this requirement has to be balanced with the need to make the review
relevant to a broad audience. The right choice depends on your topic, research objectives and
research questions, which we discuss in this article. While your are working on your analysis, you
should ask the following questions: What are the key terms, concepts and problems addressed by the
author. A literature review is a comprehensive summary of previous research on a topic. The goals
and objectives of the research question determine what goes inside these three sections. Writing your
literature review should be an iterative process. Well, there are (at least) four core functions: For you
to gain an understanding (and demonstrate this understanding) of where the research is at currently,
what the key arguments and disagreements are. Skim reading allows you to quickly grasp what the
article is about, and its value. This step will help you work out the structure of your literature review
and (if applicable) show how your own research will contribute to existing knowledge. Writing a
literature review requires you to read through and collate several research articles and literature
sources. Create a matrix of the studies for easy analysis, and synthesis, across all of the studies. In
addition to choosing your topic, you should also select a target audience. Simply put, it’s essential to
build your own catalogue of the literature. It (literature review), in fact, surveys and survives on
scholarly articles and other sources such as dissertations. Connections should be made linking those
sources to one another.
You likely won’t be able to read absolutely everything that has been written on your topic, so it will
be necessary to evaluate which sources are most relevant to your research question. Extract
information from primary studies We must identify and capture information from each primary
study. There are various approaches to organizing the body of a literature review. In addition to
asking Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How questions, other types of questions you might
begin to ask to further refine your topic include those that are: Descriptive, Differential or
Comparative, Associative or Relational. Consider joining the Center for Cancer Research (CCR) at
the National Cancer Institute Bethesda, Maryland (US) NIH National Cancer Institute (NCI)
Postdoctoral Fellow (PhD) Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science,
free to your inbox daily. She is majorly involved in developing and reviewing online content plans
that engage and resonate with audiences. It demonstrates to your readers how your research fits
within a larger field of study. Literature reviews should involve several pieces of information like
the reason for writing a review, a brief discussion of the topic, an organized list of all academic
sources used, in addition to a comprehensive evaluation of each one. The literature review
acknowledges the work of previous researchers, and in so doing, assures the reader that your work
has been well conceived. It should only take two or three devoted sessions. Make sure that you only
get articles and books in those areas, even if you come across fascinating books in other areas. Rule
1: Define a Topic and Audience How to choose which topic to review. You cannot categorize the
information provided by electronic sources, but here are some tips for using them: 1) acknowledge
that anyone can post information on the Internet, so the quality may vary, and 2) information posted
on the web for general audiences may not be appropriate data for your Lit Review (general
audiences tend to need less detail and scholarly information). Provide, in a brief and concise way,
the context of the study. To maintain track of the scholarly articles and sources, use a bibliography
or reference management software like EndNote or Zotero. Review of literature or literature review,
in educational research, has great significance for scientists and writers. Methodological Approach
This approach centers on the research methods employed in various studies related to your topic. For
example, searching for articles on the economic history of Australia, you can simply type in. This
saves time when you want to redo, or modify, the searches. Additionally, verify the accuracy and
consistency of citations and references based on the chosen citation style (e.g., APA, MLA). This
comprehensive revision process guarantees a polished and well-structured literature review. At the
end of the day, it’s the students responsibility to do their own research and work. Talk about the
main points, give your thoughts, and point out any gaps in what's already known. A literature review
is a thorough review and analysis of the literature available in a chosen or given subject area. It
shouldn't just list and summarise what you've read. The choice between a chronological, thematic,
theoretical, or methodological approach depends on the nature of your topic and the goals of your
review. There are five key steps to writing a literature review: Search for relevant literature Evaluate
sources Identify themes, debates, and gaps Outline the structure Write your literature review A good
literature review doesn’t just summarize sources—it analyzes, synthesizes, and critically evaluates to
give a clear picture of the state of knowledge on the subject. It has limited ontological knowledge,
and it searches broadly. Some might argue that you should be sending your work to your supervisor
sooner than this (indeed your university might formally require this), but in my experience,
supervisors are extremely short on time (and often patience), so, the more refined your chapter is, the
less time they’ll waste on addressing basic issues (which you know about already) and the more time
they’ll spend on valuable feedback that will increase your mark-earning potential. Give your
interpretation of how and why certain developments occurred. To help you build a conceptual
framework for empirical testing (if applicable to your research topic).
The introduction should clearly establish the focus and purpose of the literature review. Your
literature review format depends heavily on the kind of manuscript you are writing — an entire
chapter in case of doctoral theses, a part of the introductory section in a research article, to a full-
fledged review article that examines the previously published research on a topic. It has limited
ontological knowledge, and it searches broadly. Utilize reputable academic databases for literature
searches like Google Scholar or your university's library resources. On the other hand, inductive logic
means, you ought to apply facts to arrive at a theory based on observations. Be careful when taking
notes to use quotation marks if you are provisionally copying verbatim from the literature. A
literature review is a survey of scholarly sources on a specific topic. It would be best if you always
take references from different publications to validate your theory. Review the literature Some
questions to help you analyze the research: What was the research question of the study you are
reviewing. Some journals are now favouring the publication of rather short reviews focusing on the
last few years, with a limit on the number of words and citations. Chronological Approach This
approach organizes your review based on the temporal progression of events, theories, or studies.
Also, because textbooks are designed for teaching rather than research, they are unlikely to be
effective in your Lit Review. Organize your notes using a table, mind map, or other technique. Like
any other research paper, the literature review format must contain three sections: introduction, body,
and conclusion. A literature review is a survey of credible sources on a topic, often used in
dissertations, theses, and research papers. Commonly, a literature review is written to help develop
and justify a novel research question. Source: Effective Writing Center, University of Maryland.
Example: In a review of psychological studies on memory, sections could be organized around
cognitive, behavioral, and neuroscientific theories. Assignment types Steps for writing assignments
Literature review example analysis Learning Advisers Our advisers can help undergraduate and
postgraduate students in all programs clarify ideas from workshops, help you develop skills and give
feedback on assignments. For this, we apply inclusion and exclusion criteria defined in the protocol
to obtain the final list of primary studies that will be considered in the review. It does not reference
and list all of the material you have cited in your paper. By combining information from all relevant
studies, meta-analysis can provide more precise estimates of the effects than those derived from the
individual studies included within a review. Write in well-structured paragraphs, use transitions and
topic sentences and critically analyze each source for how it contributes to the themes you are
researching. An academic essay is written for a scholarly audience. The adage, “measure twice, cut
once” is very suitable here. Lisa Eblen, MLIS, AHIP Research Symposium 16 November 2011.
Check to make sure that you have not plagiarized either by failing to cite a source of information, or
by using words quoted directly from a source. (Usually if you take three or more words directly from
another source, you should put those words within quotation marks, and cite the page.) Text should
be written in a clear and concise academic style; it should not be descriptive in nature or use the
language of everyday speech. To identify the most important publications on your topic, take note of
recurring citations. Alternatively, if you’re a fan of physical note-taking, investing in a large
whiteboard might work for you. To challenge a common assumption, include a representative list of
papers to demonstrate that it's common; you don't have to list every paper that makes the assumption.
Aids in Forming Research Questions: Helps shape precise and meaningful research questions,
building on existing theories. There is no set way to do this as it will depend on your preference for
reading printed. Contextualization: Enables researchers to understand how their work fits into the
broader academic conversation and contributes to the existing body of knowledge. Because books
take longer to publish than journal articles, they are typically out of date. Source:
research.phoenix.edu When writing a research paper on a specific topic, you will often need to
include an overview of any prior research that has been overall, all literature reviews, whether they
are written as a part of a larger work or as separate articles unto themselves, have a common feature.
Outline and identify the purpose of a literature review As a first step on how to write a literature
review, you must know what the research question or topic is and what shape you want your
literature review to take. These are excellent for finding out about new research or study that hasn’t
been published yet. Then, you can clarify whether the literature review is part of a bigger effort or if
it is a standalone piece in this section. For example, if the area you are researching is a relatively new
field, and there is little or no existing literature or theory that indicates what you will find, then your
literature review will likely be based on a research question. Identify Gaps Highlight areas where
existing research falls short. Like other forms of academic writing, your literature review should take
this format: It's an overview and evaluation of what has been found, explored, and written on the
topic of a given. A literature review allows you to highlight essential ideas and methodologies while
also highlighting gaps in whatever research currently exists because it provides an overview of
existing research. In this case, the purpose is to evaluate the current state of research and
demonstrate your knowledge of scholarly debates around a topic. Now, let's jump to other important
aspects of this process. In-text citations are key to a good literature review. The type of paper you
want to write (Definition, Analysis, Narration, etc.) can also be a useful way to begin thinking about
your research question. Talk to your professor, brainstorm, and read lecture notes and recent issues of
periodicals in the ?eld. In addition, you can talk about how and why the different sources choose
particular methodologies, such as whether the source is sociological, cultural, or historical. Step 2:
Analyze and Select Sources In the second phase of your research, it is essential to carefully evaluate
and select sources that directly contribute to your research question. In general, a review of the
literature should neither be a public relations brochure nor an exercise in competitive self-denial.
Keep careful notes so that you may track your thought processes during the research process. Plan
what you are doing in a way that you could describe so that somebody else could replicate what you
have done. Here is how to write a good literature review: Step 1: Search Relevant Literature Start by
searching for scholarly sources that you will cite in your paper that are closely related to your
research topic. It can be difficult in a saturated field to find many areas that have not yet been
covered, but when you do, it will be much easier to explain why your topic and approach are
essential and original. To maintain track of the scholarly articles and sources, use a bibliography or
reference management software like EndNote or Zotero. If you are worried about whether you are
conducting a complete search of all the literature or not, make an appointment with your Faculty
Librarian who can show you some very useful tips on how to modify your searches so that you waste
less time, get more effective results and overall, cause less frustration for yourself. There is no
universal definition of what a quality study is, but the literature suggests that these studies have little
or no bias, and that internal and external validity is maximized. That is, you will write a document
about your review, which could be an article, chapter of your TCC, etc. This is a prime example of
an organisation requiring to adapt and being flexible in a changing environment in order to remain
relevant and competitive (Prahalad and Hamel, 1990: 1). The funders had no role in the preparation
of the manuscript.

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