Literature Review

I. Multiple choice questions

1. A review of the literature prior to formulating research questions allows the researcher to:
a) Provide an up-to-date understanding of the subject, its significance, and structure
b) Present the kinds of research methodologies used in previous studies
c) Guide the development of research questions d) All of the above

2. When planning to do social research, it is better to:

a) Approach the topic with an open mind b) Do a pilot study before getting stuck into it
c) Be familiar with the literature on the topic
d) Forget about theory because this is a very practical undertaking

3. We review the relevant literature to know:

a) What is already known about the topic b) Who are the key contributors to the topic
c) What concepts and theories have been applied to the topic d) All of the above

4. The literature review will examine:

a) only facts b) only opinions c) all aspects of a topic d) only one side of the main argument

5. The starting point for a literature search is:

a) primary data b) tertiary data c) secondary data d) some other data

6. Researchers need to be cautious of some material, particularly material found online. Why?
a) The quality is unknown b) It has been used before
c) It is too recent d) The authors name often does not appear

7. Which of these will NOT help you to decide whether a publication is reputable?
a) Citation rate b) Advertising inside c) Audience d) Importance to peers

8. Why is it important for a researcher to review the literature?

a) Because it shows time has been spent on the subject
b) Because it will find if anyone has done the work before
c) Because it identifies like-minded researchers d) Because it is traditional

9. Which of these is the most efficient way to locate relevant journals?

a) Browsing the shelves in the library b) Browsing in a newsagents
c) Searching using tertiary sources d) Following up references in articles

10. Which of the following is the sequence in which you should use a database?
a) Limit dates of papers; print out full text papers; read abstracts; enter search terms
b) Print out papers; read abstracts; limit dates; think of search terms
c) Think of search terms; enter terms into database; limit dates of papers; read abstracts; print out full text
papers
d) None of the above
11. Which of the following are ways in which we suggest you might maximize your marks?
a) Using the internet to find key researchers
b) Review notes you made on editorial and overview papers and chapters
c) Be as critically evaluative of your own study as you were of other people’s d) All of the above

12. How do we suggest you deal with competing/alternative theoretical frameworks?

a) Choose the one that has been used most often in published papers
b) Ensure that you only refer to papers from your chosen theoretical framework
c) Evaluate the quality of evidence for each
d) Choose only frameworks that have been developed in the past ten years

13. A review of the literature could enable the investigator to do which of the following?
a) Evaluate the significance of the research b) Identify weaknesses in other studies
c) Identify promising procedures and instruments d) Revise the problem e) All of the above

14. Why is a primary literature source more valuable to a researcher than a secondary literature source?
a) It gives general information about a particular topic
b) It provides detailed information about all aspects of the study
c) It reviews relevant literature d) It synthesizes the results from a number of related studies

15. Which of the following is a source for primary literature?

a) Educational journals b) Government documents c) Dissertations and theses d) All of the above

16. Which one of the following statements does NOT appropriately describe the review of the literature in a
QUANTITATIVE report?
a) It discusses each and every reference separately
b) It reports the current status of the knowledge of the problem
c) It provides a theoretical and/or empirical rationale for the research problem
d) It provides criticism of the reviewed research

17. Why is it important to read original articles when you are reviewing the literature?
a) To obtain an overview of methods and procedures b) To look for flaws in the method
c) To examine the validity of the conclusions d) All of these

18. You are about to do a literature search, what would be the first stage?
a) Do a literature search online b) Ask your lecturer for some articles
c) Order some inter-library loans d) Read introductory textbooks

19. It is acceptable to consider the application of research findings as an indication of the value of some research.
Why does this prove difficult with qualitative research?
a) Because qualitative research is subjective and this undermines its impact
b) Because qualitative research cannot be used effectively to solve a problem
c) Because qualitative research is never used in applied economics
d) Because quantitative research is better than qualitative research when it comes to applied economics

20. When reading a journal article you should do what?

a) Use the same ideas for your project b) Accept their ideas - after all they are published authors
c) Read it as a way of obtaining more information d) Approach it with a questioning style
21. If you find that someone else publishes work similar to yours before your project is completed, what could you
do?
a) Completely revamp your ideas so you are not replicating their study
b) There is nothing you can do so do not mention it in your study
c) Acknowledge it in your report and evaluate the study d) Change your hypotheses and aims

22. If a study is "reliable", this means that:

a) It was conducted by a reputable researcher who can be trusted
b) The measures devised for concepts are stable on different occasions
c) The findings can be generalized to other social settings
d) The methods are stated clearly enough for the research to be replicated

23. Why do you need to review the existing literature?

a) To make sure you have a long list of references b) To help in your general studying
c) Because without it, you could never reach the required word-count
d) To find out what is already known about your area of interest

24. A systematic literature review is:

a) One which starts in your own library, then goes to on-line databases and, finally, to the internet
b) A replicable, scientific and transparent process
c) One which gives equal attention to the principal contributors to the area
d) A responsible, professional process of time-management for research

25. What is the first stage of a systematic review?

a) Assess the relevance of each study to the research question(s)
b) Define the purpose and scope of the review
c) Appraise the quality of studies from the previous step
d) Survey all of the literature contained within a single library

26. A literature review is an important part of the research process because

a) it is a summary of what literature is available on your topic
b) it allows you identify and read key books and articles by some of the main figures who have written in the
field
c) my supervisor likes to create more reading for me
d) I like to visit the library and read generally around my topic

27. Which of these is NOT a purpose of a project's literature review?

a) To analyse your empirical data b) To show how your ideas build on the work of others
c) To show your awareness of current thinking on your topic
d) To avoid repeating work already done

28. When you are asked to compare and contrast, you should:
a) Create good bases for comparison
b) Use the literature to find what are considered the most significant bases for comparison
c) Use your own knowledge to find the most significant bases for comparison
d) Expect that there will be no complexities in your comparison
29. Your assignment topic is: Evaluate the anti-discrimination policy in Company X. In order to respond to this
topic you will need to:
a) Develop criteria as a basis for assessing the policy
b) Decide how truthful the claim is given all the evidence in the literature
c) Develop relevant, significant and comprehensive criteria as a basis for assessing the anti-discrimination policy
d) Use the literature to develop relevant, significant and comprehensive criteria as a basis for the assessment

30. How can you tell if a claim is well supported in the literature?
a) A number of sources make the same claim b) You agree with it
c) The author is very well respected d) It is described fully in the article

31. To read critically means:

a) taking an opposing point of view to the ideas and opinions expressed
b) skimming through the material because most of it is just padding
c) evaluating what you read in terms of your own research questions
d) being negative about something before you read it

32. A review of the literature prior to formulating research questions allows the researcher to do which of the
following?
a) To become familiar with prior research on the phenomenon of interest
b) To identify potential methodological problems in the research area
c) To develop a list of pertinent problems relative to the phenomenon of interest  d) All of the above

33. A formal statement of the research question or “purpose of research study” generally ______.
a) Is made prior to the literature review  b) Is made after the literature review
c) Will help guide the research process  d) All of the above e) b and c

34. To read the literature critically means:

a) to suggest the previous research was always poorly conducted
b) skimming through the material because most of it is just padding
c) evaluating what you read in terms of your own research questions
d) being negative about something before you read it

35. What can a researcher use the literature to achieve?

a) They can demonstrate their competence by referring to prominent writings in the field
b) They develop their version of the literature in such a way as to show and to lead up to the contribution they will
be making in their own project or article
c) All of the above
d) They can identify a gap or problem in the literature that corresponds to the research questions

36. Which of the follow is a benefit of a systematic review?

a) It reduces researcher bias and demands the researcher is comprehensive of their approach
b) It is really quick to complete c) It is cost effective as an approach
d) It provides internal validity to the study

37. What is a limitation of systematic review?

a) It is too hard to do b) They are particularly complicated
c) The research cannot be defined into the impact of a single variable
d) The researcher community finds them complex

38. Literature review is not usually concerned with helping in:

a) objective setting b) literary appreciation
c) subsequent data collection d) research instrument design

39. Which of the following do we recommend as ways to build your general knowledge of a topic area?
a) Read a good recent textbook chapter b) find and use a reader on the topic in question
c) Look for the most recent ‘in press’ publication before reading any other material
d) Answers A and B

40. Which of the following are ways in which we suggest you might maximize your marks?
a) Be as critically evaluative of your own study as you were of other people’s
b) Review notes you made on editorial and overview papers and chapters
c) Using the internet to find key researchers d) All of the above

41. To be original a study must be:

a) Radically different from previous research b) Addressing a gap in the existing research literature
c) Conducted with a sample that has never been studied before d) All of the above

42. What do you need to be able to provide in order for your research to pass the ‘so what?’ test?
a) Proof that no-one has ever conducted a similar study
b) Implications of answering the research question
c) Reasons why the research is important d) Answers B and C

43. How do we suggest you deal with competing/alternative theoretical frameworks?

a) Choose the one that has been used most often in published papers
b) Ensure that you only refer to papers from your chosen theoretical framework
c) Evaluate the quality of evidence for each
d) Choose only frameworks that have been developed in the past ten years

44. Which of the following do we suggest may be misplaced criticisms of published work?
a) Criticizing work without considering the date when it was published
b) Criticizing work on the basis that the sample was not truly random
c) Criticizing studies for their small sample size without considering the difficulty of accessing the population
d) All of the above

45. Which of the following characterizes a good project idea?

a) It is rooted in the economics literature b) It will add something new to the literature
c) It is achievable by you in the time you have available d) All of the above

46. Which of the following are common pitfalls students fall into when choosing their project idea?
a) Generating an idea without checking that there is an economics literature that can be related to it
b) Generating an idea that is somewhat dated because the topic has been covered in first or second year lectures
c) Choosing a topic you are not really interested in simply because it interests a member of staff you like
d) All of the above

47. Which of these are advantages of doing your project as part of a team?
a) Students can copy sections of each others’ reports b) The burden of data collection may be shared
c) Team skills may be developed d) answers B and C

48. Which of these are disadvantages or difficulties associated with team student projects?
a) Competitive students may not want to share materials or data
b) Weaker students may be tempted to freeload off the efforts of others
c) The supervisor can be safely relied upon to manage the overall project d) Answers A and B

49. Which of the following are sources for finding related literature?
a) Print b) Electronic c) Verbal d) None of the above

50. Which of the following are the CORRECT steps to reviewing the literature?
a) Analyze the problem statement, search and read secondary literature, select the appropriate index,
transform the problem statement into search language, conduct a computerized search, read the primary
literature, organize notes, write the review
b) Search and read primary literature, synthesize the results from a number of related studies, develop research
hypotheses
c) Place the study in a historical perspective, select promising methods and measures, define and limit the problem
d) None of the above

51. Science is best defined as

a) the search for knowledge using recognized methods in data collection, analysis, and interpretation
b) a body of established or accepted knowledge
c) an unwillingness to accept new knowledge critically d) theory generation and verification

52. Which of the following represent steps in the research process?

a) Select a general problem, review the literature on that problem,, and refine the problem to the specific question
being researched
b) Collect data and analyze it appropriately
c) Interpret the findings and state conclusions drawn from them d) All of the above

53. Which of the following is a characteristic of scientific research?

a) Objective b) Precise c) Verifiable d) Empirical e) All of the above

54. The most general and abstract knowledge is derived from which of the following types of research?
a) applied research in a given field b) basic research
c) evaluation research on a practice d) None of the above

55. The term mode of inquiry can be best defined as

a) the methods for collecting quantitative and qualitative data
b) the lines of communication between the research and subjects
c) the format of a research report d) none of the above

56. Which of the following is a characteristic of quantitative data collection?

a) The primary data source is the field notes b) Data is described statistically
c) The data is primary in the form of words d) Data sources include documents

57. Which of the following is a characteristic of qualitative data collection?

a) Responses are determined by the instrument used b) Data is primarily in the form of numbers
c) Data is collected at fixed points in time
d) Data collection is continuous throughout the entire study

58. Which of the following statements best describes a research problem?

a) Formal statements to indicate a need for empirical investigation
b) Value questions c) Vague propositions d) Explanation of how to do something

59. Which of the following are criteria for evaluating a research problem statement? The statement of:
a) The appropriate logic for resolving the problem b) The feasibility of the problem
c) All of the above d) An actual problem e) The significance of the problem

60. Which of the following is not a characteristic of research?

a) It requires the collection of new data b) It is
reiterative
c) It requires reasoned arguments to develop conclusions d) It aims to increase understanding

61. A study that investigates the relationship between gender and income would be an example of?
a) Exploratory research b) Descriptive research
c) Explanatory research d) Predictive research

62. A study that explores the success of leadership styles using data from the past three years results to identify
potential improvements would be?
a) Pure, theoretical research b) Applied, theoretical research
c) Pure empirical research d) Applied empirical research

63. These are the common mistakes in choosing a research topic, EXCEPT
a) Topic is too difficult b) Topic is too broad
c) Sticking with the last topic that comes into mind d) Inadequate literature on the topic

64. These are how we can construct a good research hypothesis, EXCEPT?
a) Acceptable b) Logical c) Testable d) Refutable

65. Which of the following is the last step of the problem-definition process?
a) Write research questions and/or hypothesis b) Determine relevant variables
c) Determine the unit of analysis d) Understand the background of the problem
True or false:

1. The literature review takes place at the start of the project and then stops. False

2. At the start of a literature search it is wrong to generate search terms because they can bias thinking.
False

3. The critical review will need to show how the findings and the theories have been developed, or have been used,
relating to the research that has gone before. True

4. Only literature published in the last ten years should be included in the literature review. False

5. Literature searches are important to do at the start of a project; they do not continue throughout the project.
False
6. At the start of a literature search it is wrong to generate key words because they can bias thinking. False

7. Considering the number of articles, you stop collecting when you have enough. True

8. The significance of your research and what you find out will inevitably be judged in relation to other people's
research and their findings. True

9. The critical review will need to show how the findings and the theories have been developed, or have been used,
relating to the research that has gone before. True

10.Only literature published in the last ten years should be included in the literature review. False

11.It is essential that you evaluate the quality of internet resources because information obtained via the internet
ranges from very poor to very good. True

12.Questions derived from practice often point toward an unmet demand for needs assessments, program
evaluations, and clinical effectiveness studies. True

13.The five steps of the research process can vary according to the goal of the research project or according to what
methods are used. False
Fill in blank:

1. _________ research presents statistical results represented by numbers. (Quantitative)

2. __________ research presents data as narration with words. (Qualitative)

3. __________ is a systematic process of collecting and logically analyzing data for some purpose.
(Research)
4. __________ research is concerned with knowledge and explaining through testing theories. (Basic)

5. __________ predicts and explains natural phenomena. (Theory)

6. __________ research is concerned with the application and development of research-based knowledge
about a practice. (Applied)

7. When researchers have access to data that others have gathered and conduct analyses on that data, it is
__________. (Secondary data analysis)

8. Designs where quantitative data are collected first before the qualitative data are __________ designs.
(Explanatory)

9. In research, abstract concepts are called __________. (Constructs)

10. A __________ has different values. (variable)

11. A tentative statement of the expected relationship between two or more variable is the __________.
(research hypothesis)

12. __________ data is information previously collected for some other problem or issue. (secondary)

13. __________is an idea expressed as a word or symbol. (concept)

14. The research process should be guided by __________. (scientific method)

Short essay questions

Define research and the characteristics of scientific research.

Identify the phases of the research process.

Define the term literature review. Identify the purposes of a literature review.

Distinguish between secondary and primary sources. Identify sources for both types of information.

Identify the steps used to review related literature.

Identify the common sources of research problems.

What is exploratory research? Give examples of exploratory research.

What is descriptive research? What are some examples of descriptive research?

The advantages of secondary data? What are the disadvantages of secondary data?

What is qualitative research? What is quantitative research?

What's the difference between a research question and a hypothesis?