School of Computing Science and Engineering

Course Code : BTCS4801 Course Name: Research Methodology & IPR

Unit II

LITERATURE STUDIES

Name of the Faculty: Dr. Balbindar Kaur Program Name: B.Tech

 Effective literature studies approaches

1. Find literature associated with the topic.

2. Search and analyze the literature.
3. Evaluate the paper before reading.
4. Cite literature properly.
5. Make a summary table of reviewed papers.
6. Avoid plagiarism.
7. Write a journal article based on literature review.

1. Develop a research question in a specific subject area

2. Make a list of relevant databases and texts you will search
3. Make a list of relevant keywords and phrases
4. Start searching and make notes from each database to keep track of your search
5. Review the literature and compile all the results into a report
6. Revise your original research question if necessary
How can you make your literature search
more effective?
• A literature search can be a daunting, tiring and time-consuming task.
• Since this activity forms the foundation for future research, it is
essential for it to be absolutely comprehensive and accurate.
1. Develop a Well-Defined Question- Focused
• Not too broad and not too narrow in scope
• Complex enough to allow for research and analysis
2. Choose the Right Keywords
3. Do Not Ignore Non-obvious Sources-conference proceedings,
ongoing research at university labs (mentioned on university websites),
online discussion forums, databases of high-quality pre-print material,
and postdoctoral theses.
4. Evaluate Literature for Quality
• You’ve got all the literature in place, but how do you know if it’s
reliable? Since you’re going to be building your research on this
information you need to have some quality control and make sure
that sources are credible. Evaluate the credibility of the source by
asking these questions:
• Where was the research published?
• When was it published?
• Has it been peer-reviewed?
• Does the author have good credentials?
• Is the article free from bias?
5. Redefine Your Question
• Is it still relevant and valid?
• Does it have to be revised?
• While doing the literature search, make notes from the “Suggestions
for Future Work” in the papers you find relevant and interesting.
• Will help to formulate the research question better and make the
focus of the research clearer.
 PLAGIARISM
• Plagiarism is defined by as ―to use the words or ideas of other persons as if they
were your own words or ideas.
• In other words plagiarism can be understood as copying whole or a portion of
work belonging to other person, without acknowledging his original contribution.
• It shows a non serious and disrespectful attitude of a student towards his course,
professor and the institution. If a paper is plagiarized then the basic purpose
behind framing a research paper is defeated and the standard of a paper is
deteriorated.
• It doesn't matter whether the source is a published author, another student, a
Web site without clear authorship, a Web site that sells academic papers, or any
other person: Taking credit for anyone else's work is stealing, and it is
unacceptable in all academic situations, whether you do it intentionally or by
accident.‟
Types of Plagiarism
1. Verbatim Plagiarism- This is the most visible and severe type of plagiarism,
wherein a person copies text word by word, in an unaltered fashion from the
original source and without giving a proper clear citation or credit to the
original author.
2. Mosaic plagiarism or patch writing- If there is a blur between original author
and your idea or in other words copying small ideas or few words from the
original source and interlinking them with your idea, without properly
acknowledging, which gives a indication that the whole text is original, may
amount to mosaic plagiarism.
3. Unintentional Plagiarism: When a researcher is following the authentic
methods and sources, but omits to cite a source or when he paraphrase or
quote poorly without citation, then also he would be guilty of plagiarism,
although he did not had any intention to deceive or cheat.
4. Structure Plagiarism: In order to avoid verbatim plagiarism, many a time a
researcher might paraphrase the original text and use the basic idea without citing
the original author, then his act would be considered as structure plagiarism.
5. Self Plagiarism: If an author has generated a work on a previous occasion and
later on use excerpts from that work without citing his own previous work, then he
would be guilty of self plagiarism.
 Why Plagiarism Is Considered Bad??????
• Plagiarism is termed bad because its existence weakens the threads of scholarly work
and injures the prospect of research.
• If undetected and properly addressed, plagiarism might develop into a habit of the
researcher and true qualities of a researcher can never be generated in him/her.
• If an institute does not follow stringent internal plagiarism checks, then it might
devalue its reputation if the students are caught for plagiarism, somewhere else.
Hence it is essential that both the faculty and students take collective steps to stop
plagiarism.
• A research paper might have parts that contain very useful and novel contents but if
portion of it is plagiarized, then overall quality will be eroded.
• It defeats the basis purpose and aim behind conducting research.
• It amounts to passing over somebody else‟s hard work and valuable resources.
• Besides grades, it dilutes the primary purpose of conducting research, i.e. to discover
the unknown.
 Reasons for committing plagiarism
Although traces of plagiarism can be found in various fields of study and even the
highest ranks of scholars are not immune to it but it has been found that the most
affected people are the research scholars and university students and most commonly
reasons cited for plagiarism by scholars and students are:
(a) Lack of detailed awareness about plagiarism among students.
(b) Many students consider that information should be freely available and
transmitted and hence disregard the concept of plagiarism intentionally.
(c) Lack of time can also be a reason for students to resort to easy methods like
copying or even outsourcing their assignment to paid online websites.
(d) If a student thinks that he incapable of writing a quality paper then he might incline
to copy- pasting or paraphrasing.
(e) Some students want to publish their articles at any cost and as a result they might
steal ideas or copy edited or paraphrase text from articles published in reputed
journals, to make their article look promising.
 Disadvantages of Plagiarism Software
1. It does not come free in most of the cases
2. Student data and student work are being made available to third
parties
3. Students actually have to sit down to a test to fulfill the
requirements
4. Formatting is lost in the checking procedure.
5. Sometimes unsystematic and labor-intensive, involves manual
entry of strings.
 Plagiarism Detection Tools

• Turnitin
• Urkund • Ithenticate
• PlagiarismDetect
• Copycatch • Ephorus:
• PlagAware
• Wcopyfind • PlagScan
• Eve2 (Essay Verification • CheckForPlagiarism.net
• iThenticate
Engine) • PlagiarismDetection.org
• GPSP - Glatt Plagiarism • Gplag
• Marble
Screening Program • Plaggie
• MOSS - a Measure of • SIM
Software Similarity
• Jplag
• Plagiarism-Finder
 Research Ethics
Objectives in research ethics
1. The objective is to ensure that research is conducted in a way that
serves interests of individuals, groups and/or society as a whole.
2. To examine specific research activities and projects for their ethical
soundness, looking at issues such as the management of risk,
protection of confidentiality and the process of informed consent.
Introduction: Research ethics involves the application of fundamental
ethical principles to a variety of topics involving scientific research
 CODES AND POLICIES FOR RESEARCH ETHICS
1. Honesty: Strive for honesty in all scientific communications. Honestly report data,
results, methods and procedures, and publication status. Do not fabricate, falsify, or
misrepresent data. Do not deceive colleagues, granting agencies, or the public.
2. Objectivity: Strive to avoid bias in experimental design, data analysis, data
interpretation, peer review, personnel decisions, grant writing, expert testimony, and
other aspects of research where objectivity is expected or required. Avoid or
minimize bias or self-deception. Disclose personal or financial interests that may
affect research.
3. Integrity: Keep your promises and agreements, act with sincerity, strive for
consistency of thought and action.
4. Carefulness: Avoid careless errors and negligence; carefully and critically examine
your own work and the work of your peers. Keep good records of research activities,
such as data collection, research design, and correspondence with agencies or
journals.
5. Openness: Share data, results, ideas, tools, resources. Be open to criticism and new
ideas
6. Respect for Intellectual Property: Honor patents, copyrights, and other
forms of intellectual property. Do not use unpublished data, methods, or
results without permission. Give credit where credit is due. Give proper
acknowledgement or credit for all contributions to research. Never plagiarize.
7. Confidentiality: Protect confidential communications, such as papers or
grants submitted for publication, personnel records, trade or military secrets,
and patient records.
8. Responsible Publication: Publish in order to advance research and
scholarship, not to advance just your own career. Avoid wasteful and
duplicative publication.
9. Responsible Mentoring: Help to educate, mentor, and advise students.
Promote their welfare and allow them to make their own decisions
10. Respect for colleagues: Respect your colleagues and treat them fairly
• Self Study Topic:
1. Explain the following: a. Scopus Indexed
Journals b. Science Citation Index c.
Journal Imapct Factor d. h-index e. SJR
2. significance of Novelty Search in research.