University of Bahrain

College of Information Technology

BDSA601 ITML 603

The Literature Review

Professor name
(slides modified from an earlier version by Dr. Another
Professor)

1
Objectives:
After the completion of this lecture, you should be able to:

• Identify the purpose of a literature review.

• Systematically organize the literature.
• Appraise the literature and write up the literature review.

2
Definition of a Literature Review :
Literature review is a systematic reading, appraising and critiquing of
previously published information relating to an area of investigation.

literature review= literature survey= state of the art =related work

It is part of a larger research study (like a thesis, dissertation, research project,

journal or conferences paper).
It is both descriptive and analytical.
- It is descriptive in that it describes the work of previous writers.

- It is analytical in that it critically analyses the contribution of others

with the view of identifying similarities and contradictions made by
previous writers.
What a Literature Review is NOT
• It is not an annotated bibliography
• It is not just a descriptive list
• It is not a basic summative report of what you've read on the topic

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Possible Purpose of a Literature Review

 Integrate what others  Sets the scope of the study

have done and said,
 Justifies the scope and
 criticize previous context of the study
scholarly works,
 Establishes the theoretical
 Build bridges between framework
related topic areas,
 Justifies the methodology of
 identify the central the study
issues in a field.
 Makes an argument
Sets the broad context of
the study

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 Possible Purpose of a Literature Review
 To see what has and has not  To develop alternative research
been investigated. projects.
 To develop general explanation  To discover how a research
for observed variations in a project is related to the work of
behavior or phenomenon. others.
 To identify potential  To familiarize the reader with
relationships between concepts relevant literature and research
and to identify researchable in an area of study
hypotheses.  To demonstrate relationships
 To learn how others have among the prior research
defined and measured key  To inform the reader what has
concepts. already been discovered to
 To identify data sources that avoid duplication
other researches have used.  To identify gaps and
discrepancies in the literature

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 Understand
current
Purpose of Literature Review
knowledge

Set your
Survey
research
methodology
direction

Survey Find open

results questions

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 Select a
The Literature Review Process
Topic

Search
Write the
the
Review
Literature

Critique Develop
the your
Literature Argument

Survey
the
Literature

From The Literature Review (2009) by Machi and McEvoy

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There are five main
activities involved in
undertaking a literature
review:
1 Finding the sources of
information.

2 Understanding how the library

works.

3 Collecting existing knowledge on

the subject, reading and note-
taking.

4 Systematically organising the

literature.

5 Appraising and writing up the

literature review.

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 Managing Information and Note Taking:
Note-taking is the basis for the
construction of a literature
review framework and provides
the best way of maximising the
extraction of information in the
initial reading stage.

maintain a literature file to

store the material that you
collect.

Create an index sheet at the

front of the file.

get away from focusing on

what the authors are trying to
say, and instead focus on what
you are trying to get out of a
source. 10
Managing Information and Note Taking:

Try new applications for note-taking such as:

Microsoft OneNote, Google Keep, Typora the markdown
editor.

https://zapier.com/blog/best-note-taking-apps/

https://typora.io/
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 Questions to consider as you begin your
own literature review:
 Who are the principal researchers and theorists in the subject you are
researching?

 How was the previous research conducted and how does it differ from
other studies?

 What were the findings and how do they differ from other studies?

 How relevant are these conclusions today generally and for your own
research?

 What were the limitations and weaknesses of these previous studies?

 What are the major issues and debates about the research topic?

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Critical Appraisal of Literature Review:
After you have compiled the sources of information you will be ready to critically
appraise the information. Identify the following:
1 Similarities in the statements made by previous writers;
2 Common issue(s) raised by previous writers;
3 Differences or contradiction of statements made by previous writers;
4 Criticisms made by previous writers.

•Critically assess each piece of literature you have gathered to

analyze its content

• When analyzing research studies, must also identify some of the key
elements that all research studies should include:
– Problem
– Purpose
– Research questions
– Sample
– Methodology
– Datasets (any open?, problems in size, bias, etc.?)
– Key findings and results
– Conclusions
– Recommendations
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Critical Appraisal of Literature Review:

• Highlight and Extract Key Elements

– Trying to understand historical context and current state.
– Identify themes, trends, patterns.
– Looking for gaps.
– Key questions to ask of the literature:
• What are the origins and definitions of the topic?
• What are the key theories, concepts, and ideas?
• What are the major debates, arguments, and issues?
• What are the key questions and problems that have been
addressed to date?
• Are there any important issues that have been insufficiently
addressed to date?

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Write the Review
• Use the results of your analysis and critique of the literature to
develop the organization of your review.
• Develop a detailed outline
– Identify the themes and/or patterns that have emerged.
– Translate these into headings and subheadings.
– Be sure your outline is logical.
• Be selective with the literature you include

• Reorganize and reassemble all of the separate pieces and details to

create an integrated whole.
• Make connections between and among ideas and concepts.
• Never present a chain of isolated summaries of previous studies.
• The synthesis needs to build a knowledge base and extend new
lines of thinking.

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TYPICAL LITERATURE REVIEW FORMAT:
Introduction:
- Topic sentence.
- What is included and what is not (scope).
- How the findings will be presented.
- Comment on the availability of sources in the subject area
Body:
- Present the findings in an order explained in the introduction.
- Each work should be critically summarized and evaluated for its,
methodology and conclusion. It is as important to address inconsistencies,
omissions, and errors, as it is to identify accuracy, depth, and relevance.
- Use logical connections and transitions to connect sources.
Conclusion:
- Include the major agreement and disagreement of the different references.
- General conclusion.
- Identifying a gap in the previous research.
- Identifying problems with the previous research.
- Proposing to extend previous knowledge.
References:

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 CITATION AND REFERENCES:

 A citation is the way you tell your readers that certain material in
your work came from another source. It also gives your readers
the information necessary to find that source again, including:
 information about the author
 the title of the work
 the name and location of the company that published your copy of the
source
 the date your copy was published
 the page numbers of the material you are borrowing
CITATION AND REFERENCES:
WHY USE CITATIONS?

 Citations are extremely helpful to anyone who wants to find out

more about your ideas and where they came from.
 Not all sources are good or right – your own ideas may often be
more accurate or interesting than those of your sources. Proper
citation will keep you from taking the blame for someone else’s
bad ideas.
 Citing sources shows the amount of research you’ve done.
 Citing sources strengthens your work by lending outside support
to your ideas.
CITATION AND REFERENCES:

 APA style for MSc.

 All should have the same format.

CITATION AND REFERENCES: APA
STYLE
CITATION AND REFERENCES:
CITATION AND REFERENCES:
CITATION AND REFERENCES:

TOOLS FOR MANAGING REFERENCES:

http://endnote.com/ https://www.mendeley.com/ https://www.latex-project.org

WHEN DO I NEED TO CITE?
Whenever you borrow words or ideas, you need to acknowledge
their source.

The following situations always require citation:

 Whenever you use quotes

 Whenever you paraphrase
 Whenever you use an idea that someone else has already
expressed
 Whenever you make specific reference to the work of another
 Whenever someone else’s work has been critical in
developing your own ideas.
QUOTING AND PARAPHRASING
What is quoting?

Taking the exact words from an original source is called quoting.

You should quote material when you believe the way the original
author expresses an idea is the most effective means of
communicating the point you want to make.

If you want to borrow an idea from an author, but do not need

his or her exact words, you should try paraphrasing instead of
quoting.
QUOTING AND PARAPHRASING
What is paraphrasing?

A paraphrase is when you put someone else’s ideas into

your own words.
Keep in mind:
 You must change the structure of the original sentence
 Any exact words that are retained should have quotation
marks around them.
 You can’t just change the words of a sentence to synonyms
 You still must cite the source you are paraphrasing
 You add credibility to your paper by including paraphrases
 Do not add ideas, interpretations, explanations, or
assessments.
ETHICS IN ACADEMIC WRITING:
PLAGIARISM
Definition of Plagiarism
Basically, it is presenting a work of others as someone owns work
without giving credit to the original source.
plagiarism is an act of fraud. It involves both stealing someone
else’s work and lying about it afterward.
According to the Merriam-Webster OnLine Dictionary
http://www.m-w.com, to “plagiarize” means
 to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one's own
 to use (another's production) without crediting the source
 to commit literary theft
 to present as new and original an idea or product derived from an
existing source.
ETHICS IN ACADEMIC WRITING:
PLAGIARISM
Plagiarism has many forms:
 Copying words or ideas from someone else without giving
credit
 Submit someone else's work as your own.
 Buy a paper from a papermill, website, or other source.
 Failing to put a quotation in quotation marks
 Giving incorrect information about the source of a quotation
 Changing words but copying the sentence structure of a
source without giving credit
 Copying so many words or ideas from a source that it
makes up the majority of your work, whether you give
credit or not.
 Using an algorithm or a code without reference.
 WHY STUDENTS PLAGIARIZE
Deadlines, sometimes assignments feel overwhelming,
and sometimes the boundaries of plagiarism and
research just get confused.

Intentional Plagiarism just Unintentional Plagiarism

like hacking, it is thrill  Citation Confusion
 Searching vs.  Plagiarism vs. Paraphrasing
Researching  “I was just copying my notes”
 But their words are better  “I couldn’t find the source”
 Making the Grade  “I thought we didn’t have to quote
 “Everyone else is doing it” facts”
 Poor Planning  Confusion about expectations
WHY TO PREVENT PLAGIARISM:
One of the main purposes of higher education is to
 learn to do research,
 to help expand thought processes,
 to improve writing skills, and
 to learn to prepare presentations.
Then the most affected person is who plagiarized.
 it damages anyone educational experience which is involved
in research, thinking, and writing.
 plagiarism also victimizes those classmates who have
legitimately earned their grades and degrees.
 also who will be competing with the plagiarizer for school
admissions and jobs.
HOW TO PREVENT PLAGIARISM:
 Consult with your instructor
 Plan your paper
establish the boundaries between your ideas and those of
your sources.
 Take effective notes
poor note-taking can lead to many problems including
improper citations and misquotations
 When in doubt, cite sources
 Make it clear who said what
 Evaluate your sources
 Know how to cite, quote, and paraphrase
A paraphrase is a restatement in your own words of
someone else’s ideas.
 FAMOUS PLAGIARISM CASES:
 Europe's Biggest Plagiarism Cases
https://www.eubusiness.com/focus/18-04-112
 A Wave Of Plagiarism Cases Strikes German Politics
https://www.npr.org/2012/11/24/165790164/a-wave-of-plagiarism-
cases-strikes-german-politics
 Spanish university head accused of copy-paste plagiarism
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-38342101
 The most significant plagiarism cases of 2018 (so far)
https://plagiarismcheck.org/blog/the-most-significant-plagiarism-cases-
of-2018-so-far/
ONLINE WRITING SOURCES:

Purdue Online Writing Lab

https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/619/1/
UOB RULES FOR ANTI-PLAGIARISM:

 Anti-Plagiarism Policy effective from 1 September 2013.

 Academic Punishments:
• Getting zero in assignment.
• Getting F in a course or semester.
• Dismissal.
 According to 2018 UOB Thesis writing guide, only 10% copy is
allowed in submitted thesis.
 College of IT new rules for plagiarism 2021
 Similarity Index for MSc Thesis: 15%
 Single source similarity index should not exceed 2% for MSc
thesis and PhD thesis.
 Using SafeAssign in BlackBoard or Turnitin for all submissions.
 Links
• UOB Anti-Plagiarism Policy
– https://qaac.uob.edu.bh/Downloads/Anti%20P
lagiarism%20Policy.pdf
• Thesis Writing Guide Handbook
– https://uobhomesiteprod.s3.me-south-1.amaz
onaws.com/2021/03/Thesis_Writing_Guide_fi
nal-Final.pdf

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Assignment 2:
• Write a literature review for a chosen subject.
• Use the lecture note and guidelines.
• Follow a clear and effective structure.
• References are minimum of 8 (at least 3 journal articles).
• Submission is on Blackboard.
– Check for similarity using SafeAssign on Bb.
• Use APA reference style.

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References:
• Bloomberg, L.D. and M. Volpe (2008). Completing your Qualitative Dissertation: A
Roadmap from Beginning to End. Los Angeles: Sage
• Machi, L.E. and B.T. McEvoy ( 2009). The Literature Review: Six Steps to Success.
Thousand Oaks: Corwin Sage.

•Bell, J, (1996) Doing Your Research Project: A Guide for First-Time Researchers in
Education and Social Science. Open University Press.
•Cooper, H. (1989) Integrated Research: A Guide for Literature Reviews. Sage.
•Dunleavy, P. (1988) Studying for a Degree in the Humanities and Social Sciences.

•Macmillan. Haywood, P. and Wragg, E. (1982) Evaluating the Literature. Rediguide

2, School of Education, University of Nottingham.

•Howard, K. and Sharp, J. (1993)The Management of a Student Research

Project.Gower.

•Kumar, S. (1995) Undertaking Literature Review. Unpublished paper. London South

Bank University.

•Manning, D. (1995) An Examination of Alternative Dispute Resolution in the

Construction Industry. MSc dissertation. London South Bank University.

•Smith, H.W. (1991) Strategies of Social Research. Holt, Rinehart and Winston. 39