4.

Literature review

Over view of research process

 Research process
Define Environmental Problem

diagram
Define Environmental question

Define research Question

Exploration Refine the Exploration

research
Question

Research
Proposal
 Research structure cont
Research design

• D
Design Strategy
(Type, purpose, time frame, scope, environment)

Data Collection design Sampling design

Question and Instrument Pilot Testing

 Research structure cont’
Legend
Instrument revision
Research Planning
• re
Data collection and preparation
Data gathering

Analysis,
Interpretation and
reporting Data analysis and Interpretation
Research Reporting

Management
Decision
 Select a topic
• Refer to previous discussion on selection criteria
• Guideline research topics
• Examples of research question that lead to a topic
• What is the level of ground water pollution as a result of mining
in the Bulawayo area?
• What is the impact of waste water recycling in the a mining
complex?
• What is the carbon foot print of a mining company?
• Does giving incentives to small scale miners in a catchment
area improve catchment conservation?
• Does exposure to diesel fumes increase risk of cancer?
• Does smoking cannabis increase risk of mental health
difficulties?
• What is the role of land tenure issues in the conservation
agriculture?
 Literature review
• This is the process of finding out what has been done
before on the topic of interest and what remains to be
done: ie gap analysis
• This enhances the research topic viability
• Two parts of literature review:
– To explore research idea and discover possible literature
material on the topic eg journal articles
– A thorough literature review that result in literature review
chapter and thereafter this process shall run through out the
whole period of research especially the discussion and
conclusion section
• The review reveals that
– The topic is worthwhile
– Is not a repeat of other people’s work except if it is deliberate
– Researcher is creating knew knowledge
 Objective of a literature review
• Show that the researcher is aware of the existing work
in the chosen topic
• Place the researcher's work in the context of what has
been published
• Point to strengths, weaknesses, omissions or biases
in the previous work
• Identify key issues that are troubling the research
community
• Point to gaps that have not been previously addressed
or identified
• Identify theories that the researcher will test or explore
by gathering data from the field
• Suggest theories that might explain data the
researcher has gathered in the field
• Identify research methods or strategies that the
researcher will use in the research
 Conducting a literature review
• Primary and secondary data collection: the later is a critical study or perusal
of existing data, the former uses methods such as survey, experiment, case
studies, ethnography, design and creation
• Steps in literature review
• Literature sources eg books, journals, conference papers, reports etc
• Browsing or searching; walk through the library or try goggle search, break
down topic into concepts and find out on each( further exercise on internet
search) quick look on the abstract: this captures the aims, methods, results
and value of the study:
• Assess credential of a source
• books
– Is the author someone eminent in the field
– Have you had of the publisher before
– Is the publisher a university press eg oxford uni press
– Is book 1st or subsequent edition or is it a reprint: this suggest demand for the
source
• Journals, other articles and internet sources
– Is it aimed at academics or practitioners; concentrate on those for academics
– How long has the journal existed check the volume no.
– Check credential for editorial board
– Does journal state policy for reviewing articles
 Typical journal Info
• http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/01678809
• Elsevier
• The ecological role of biodiversity in agroecosystems. Agriculture,
Ecosystem and Environment. 74(3)
• Miguel A. Altieri, Department of Environmental Science, Policy and
Management, University of California, 201 Wellman, Berkeley, CA 94720,
USA
• Abstract
• Increasingly research suggests that the level of internal regulation of function
in agroecosystems is largely dependent on the level of plant and animal
biodiversity present. In agroecosystems, biodiversity performs a variety of
ecological services beyond the production of food, including recycling of
nutrients, regulation of microclimate and local hydrological processes,
suppression of undesirable organisms and detoxification of noxious
chemicals. In this paper the role of biodiversity in securing crop protection
and soil fertility is explored in detail. It is argued that because biodiversity
mediated renewal processes and ecological services are largely biological,
their persistence depends upon the maintenance of biological integrity and
diversity in agroecosystems. Various options of agroecosystem
management and design that enhance functional biodiversity in crop fields
are described
 Journal sites
• http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journal_browse
.cws_home
• http://www.academicjournals.org/journals.htm
• http://www.academicjournals.org/AJEST/E-
books%202012.htm
• http://www.globethics.net/web/ge/library/libraries
-home?gclid=CIDjhevchrMCFWbKtAod1HYA-A
• http://www.acm.org/publications/journals
 Steps continued
• Critical reviewing the Literature: Review the book,
article etc following the checklist which was first
suggested by Bradford and Hill (1965) cited by
Hawkins (1985) as follows:
• Introduction .......................... Why did they start the
research?
• Methods ............................... What did they do?
• Results .................................. What did they find?
• Discussion ............................. What do the results
mean?

• Recording
– Brief summary of the content
– Brief summary of your evaluation
– Bibliography details
 Steps continued
• Collate the data: The data collected through reading
articles must be grouped according to identified
patterns, for instances, finding sources that support,
disagree, bring a new dimension or are critically
dismissive of the issue at stake and so forth
• Synthesizes findings: Following the grouping
according to the identified pattern, the researcher
would need to show how the data collected provides
answers to the question at stake.
• Conclusion and recommendation: Naturally one
would have to state his own view in relationship to
the finding or which school of thought appear to be
more convincing as well as make relevant
recommendation in relation to further research or
further literature review
 Citation and plagiarism
• Citation: scholarly requirement
– Author’s surname and year of publication page.
Mthembo (2010:11) argues that …
– Paraphrased idea (Mthembo 2010: 11)
– Third person citation
– Three or more authors Brian et al (2009)
– An unknown author (Anon 2011)
• Plagiarism refer to guideline provided by the
institution
 Bibliography and Referencing
• Bibliography is listing all the materials that have been
consulted while writing an essay or a book.
• References, on the other hand, are those that have
been referenced in your article or book
• Harvard style referencing;
• Book
 Originator (Author, company, institution), year of publication,
Title, edition, publisher, place
• Journal article
• Conference paper
• Newspaper article
• Internet article
• Personal communication