Title: Mastering the Art of Writing a Literature Review: UNiSW Guide

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Someone who has written twenty articles on a topic or on related topics is more than likely more
knowledgeable than someone who has written a single article. As a publication, a lit review usually
is meant to help make other scholars’ lives easier by collecting and summarizing, synthesizing, and
analyzing existing research on a topic. 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. The subsections might include how they are personified, how their
proportions are exaggerated, and their behaviors misunderstood. Third, there are the perceptions,
conclusions, opinion, and interpretations that are shared informally among scholars that become part
of the body of epistemological traditions within the field. Finally, many studies in medical education
are “one-offs,” that is, single studies undertaken because the opportunity presented itself locally. So,
when you’re piecing your literature review together, remember to pay homage to the classics, even if
only briefly. Doing a Literature Review: Releasing the Social Science Research Imagination.
Identifies critical gaps and points of disagreement. This video is published under a Creative
Commons 3.0 BY-NC-SA US license. Here are several strategies you can utilize to assess whether
you've thoroughly reviewed the literature: Look for repeating patterns in the research findings.
Articles Get discovered by sharing your best content as bite-sized articles. There is an increasing
interest in the visual aspects of social media. In many cases a researcher may discover new angles
that need further exploration by reviewing what has already been written on a topic. Cook, Kathleen
E. and Elise Murowchick. “Do Literature Review Skills Transfer from One Course to Another?”
Psychology Learning and Teaching 13 (March 2014): 3-11; Fink, Arlene. The only proofreading tool
specialized in correcting academic writing - try for free. When selecting references for the
introduction consider those that illustrate core background theoretical and methodological concepts,
as well as recent relevant studies. Researchers should consider searching for the publications of these
relevant researchers (see table 3 for search strategies). You can use a simple Synthesis Matrix to track
your notes as you read. For guidance on formatting citations, please see the UNC Libraries citation
tutorial. Thinking interdisciplinarily about a research problem can be a rewarding exercise in applying
new ideas, theories, or concepts to an old problem. It’s critical to be aware of your audience when
you’re writing a literature review, as you’ll want to be sure you’re meeting them where they are. You
start with what was published first and work your way through the literature until you reach the
work published most recently. It provides an overview of current knowledge, allowing you to
identify relevant theories, methods, and gaps in the existing research that you can later apply to your
paper, thesis, or dissertation topic. If your results are different, though, you’ll need to discuss why
and whether the difference is important. It also helps them to identify potential problems and issues
that may need to be addressed in their research study. While conducting a review of the literature,
maximize the time you devote to writing this part of your paper by thinking broadly about what you
should be looking for and evaluating. History: The chronological progression of the field, the
literature, or an idea that is necessary to understand the literature review, if the body of the literature
review is not already a chronology. The criteria for selecting literature include the sources used and
the range of dates. Consider whether your sources are current Some disciplines require that you use
information that is as current as possible.
This allows readers to understand all subsequent research within this context, thus giving it greater
impact. 7. Literature Review Helps To Identify Problems One of the main benefits of the literature
review is that it helps researchers to identify problems, issues, or controversies in the existing body of
knowledge on their topic. Take notes and cite your sources As you read, you should also begin the
writing process. First, there are the primary studies that researchers conduct and publish. Conducting
a Literature Review While there might be many reasons for conducting a literature review, following
are four key outcomes of doing the review. The practice of citing a source that you haven’t read
directly is known as “grandfathering,” and it’s not allowed. When you complete a literature review,
you can help stop yourself and others from reinventing the wheel. Problem formulation -- which
topic or field is being examined and what are its component issues? 2. It's like a masterclass to be
explored at your own pace. Second, choose how you will order all the paragraphs and combine them
in one document. The good news is that if you focus on integrating and synthesising the literature (as
I mentioned in point 3), you shouldn’t run into this issue too often, as you’ll naturally be writing
about the relationships between studies, not just about the studies themselves. Other Sections of
Your Literature Review Once you've decided on the organizational method for your literature review,
the sections you need to include in the paper should be easy to figure out because they arise from
your organizational strategy. A thematic review would have subtopics based upon factors that relate
to the theme or issue. He argued that it was this hierarchy in society that had rendered women
voiceless over the years. Include literature that supports your research question as well as that which
offers a different perspective. It can also be helpful to create an outline of how your literature
review will be structured. 5. Write the literature review itself and edit and revise as needed. Here are
examples of other sections, usually in the form of a single paragraph, you may need to include
depending on the type of review you write: Current Situation: Information necessary to understand
the current topic or focus of the literature review. For example, if you are reviewing literature about
inequalities in migrant health outcomes, key themes might include healthcare policy, language
barriers, cultural attitudes, legal status, and economic access. By doing this, you’ll achieve a
comprehensive literature base that is both well-rooted in tried and tested theory and current. Types of
reviews 1. Define your research question 2. The lit review is an important genre in many disciplines,
not just literature (i.e., the study of works of literature such as novels and plays). When writing a
literature review, you’re doing the hard work it takes to become an expert on a subject. There is an
increasing interest in the visual aspects of social media. If you are writing the literature review
section of a dissertation or research paper, you will search for literature related to your research
problem and questions. Are there any gaps in the literature that need more research. The bibliography
or reference section of sources you've already read, such as required readings in the course syllabus,
are also excellent entry points into your own research. These are frequently used in Lit Reviews since
they offer concise, up-to-date information. It also allows for effective communication among
researchers by helping them to decide which issues are significant. Video Say more by seamlessly
including video within your publication. Writing the literature review: A practical guide Available 3rd
floor of Perkins Writing literature reviews: A guide for students of the social and behavioral sciences
Available online. The goal is to deliberately document, critically evaluate, and summarize
scientifically all of the research about a clearly defined research problem.
Making it the most accurate and reliable proofreading tool for students. Use a citation manager, such
as EndNote as the repository for your citations. Because books take longer to publish than journal
articles, they are typically out of date. For more on this technique, look at the tutorial on finding
articles when you have a citation. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast,
rewritten, or redistributed without permission. You might argue for the relevance of a specific
theoretical approach, or combine various theoretical concepts to create a framework for your
research. Gathering all the literature on a topic in one place means no confusion about what research
has already been done. Identify areas of prior scholarship to prevent duplication of effort. Selection
Methods: Criteria you used to select (and perhaps exclude) sources in your literature review.
However, for the vast majority of your literature review, you need to put things into your own
words. This means drawing connections between sources to create a picture of the scholarly
conversation on a topic over time. Then, find appropriate books in the library and check them out.
Fink, Arlene. Conducting Research Literature Reviews: From the Internet to Paper. Muted Group
theory is used to explain the reason why some groups in the society; in this case women are silent.
For the discussion, citations should be thoughtfully selected to compare and contrast the present
study's findings with the current literature and to indicate how the present study moves the field
forward. What you include in each depends on the objective of your literature review. I have to use
three sources and i dont know how to incororate them into the paper. A good literature review should
also highlight what areas don’t fit together, and which pieces are missing. It provides an overview of
current knowledge, allowing you to identify relevant theories, methods, and gaps in the existing
research that you can later apply to your paper, thesis, or dissertation topic. Sitemap case study
creative writing presentation problem solving rewiew prompts websites tips. Many people would
prefer to sit down and read an article than sit down and craft what they have already read.
Introduction OK. You’ve got to write a literature review. When you have multiple sources cited in a
paragraph, you are more likely to be synthesizing them (not always, but often Read more about
synthesis here. Magazines aimed at a wide audience, such as Time, Us, and National Enquirer, will
not provide you with the information you require. Researchers should consider searching for the
publications of these relevant researchers (see table 3 for search strategies). Thousand Oaks, CA:
Sage Publications, 1998; Jesson, Jill. In other words, a research article uses expert sources as support
for your thesis, whereas a Literature Review discusses the sources. Let’s get to it! What should I do
before writing the literature review. QR Codes Generate QR Codes for your digital content. Keep on
browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Writing a literature review can be an excellent option to share the latest information on a subject you
feel passionate about. Academic Research: Create a literature review for your thesis, dissertation, or
research paper. This helps you remember what you read and saves time later in the process. You start
with some articles about the physiology of sperm whales in biology journals written in the 1980's.
When you’ve finished writing and revising your literature review, don’t forget to proofread
thoroughly before submitting. To begin organizing your literature review’s argument and structure,
be sure you understand the connections and relationships between the sources you’ve read. Give
your interpretation of how and why certain developments occurred. You can also consider the
disciplines and routes for future research here and blind spots and missing elements in existing
knowledge. For example, weave references to other sources into what you are writing but maintain
your own voice by starting and ending the paragraph with your own ideas and wording. As a
publication, a lit review usually is meant to help make other scholars’ lives easier by collecting and
summarizing, synthesizing, and analyzing existing research on a topic. What are the key concepts
and how are they defined. Based on your reading and notes, you can look for: Trends and patterns
(in theory, method or results): do certain approaches become more or less popular over time.
Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 1998; Jesson, Jill. Identification of the experts on a
particular topic. Depending on your area of study, recent may mean the last year or two, or a fair
deal longer. A literature review is a survey of scholarly sources on a specific topic. Many individuals
tend to procrastinate when it comes to completing assignments.Make sure to attend to your paper on
a daily basis.Please adhere to the guidelines given to you by your instructor.Please use the
appropriate citation style and provide the required number of sources.It is important to have
confidence in your literature review.Minor errors can have significant consequences when it comes to
quality. Teams Enable groups of users to work together to streamline your digital publishing. Teams
Enable groups of users to work together to streamline your digital publishing. What are the strengths
and weaknesses of the research. To identify the most important publications on your topic, take note
of recurring citations. As this review notes, the evidence base for employment interventions
specifically aimed at or tested with people with opioid use disorder is limited and, that, while some
of the approaches have been rigorously tested, others have not yet been evaluated but are seen as
potentially promising practices. 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. This
might seem harmless, but plagiarism is a serious form of academic misconduct and could cost you a
lot more than just a few marks. Video Say more by seamlessly including video within your
publication. You can use a subheading for each theme, time period, or methodological approach.
Resolve conflicts amongst seemingly contradictory previous studies. Finally, double check that
you’ve documented your sources and formatted the review appropriately for your discipline. The lit
review is an important genre in many disciplines, not just literature (i.e., the study of works of
literature such as novels and plays). Just like learning more about studies already in progress, you
may want to reach out to study authors to ask them questions about their methods.
This might seem harmless, but plagiarism is a serious form of academic misconduct and could cost
you a lot more than just a few marks. In other words, this is where you’re going to earn (or lose) the
most marks. Methodology -- were the techniques used to identify, gather, and analyze the data
appropriate to addressing the research problem. In this case men are referred to as the dominate
group while women, the mute group (Griffen, 2004). Narrative reviews. Organize the selected papers
by looking for patterns and by developing subtopics 5. Sometimes, completing a study on a topic
that has already been extensively researched doesn’t make sense. An annotated bibliography is a list
of source references that has a short description (called an annotation ) for each of the sources.
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. Unfortunately, there is no magic or
ideal number of citations to collect. It can be said that without a good literature review, any research
study would be doomed to fail. There are a number of different situations where you might write a
literature review, each with slightly different expectations; different disciplines, too, have field-
specific expectations for what a literature review is and does. Steps in Conducting a Literature
Review Why is it important. Themes: what questions or concepts recur across the literature. The
good news is that if you focus on integrating and synthesising the literature (as I mentioned in point
3), you shouldn’t run into this issue too often, as you’ll naturally be writing about the relationships
between studies, not just about the studies themselves. Select an organizational structure, such as
chronological, methodological, and thematic. Digital Sales Sell your publications commission-free as
single issues or ongoing subscriptions. This summarizes the concluding thoughts derived from the
testimonials. Researchers should consider searching for the publications of these relevant researchers
(see table 3 for search strategies). For example, saying that a research study had statistically
significant results is often not the same as saying a research study has results with real-world
implications. Ask your professor questions such as: “If you had to read only one book from the 90’s
on topic X, what would it be?” Questions such as this help you to find and determine quickly the
most seminal pieces in the field. A literature review is a written overview of the existing research on
a topic. Knowing who’s already working in your area and getting in touch with them can be an
invaluable source of knowledge and support. These gaps then form the foundation for your proposed
study. Write in well-structured paragraphs: use transitions and topic sentences to draw connections,
comparisons and contrasts. Here are some examples: Chronological: The simplest approach is to trace
the development of the topic over time, which helps familiarize the audience with the topic (for
instance if you are introducing something that is not commonly known in your field). If there are
conflicting studies, why do you think that is. During this process, researchers will likely identify
other researchers writing on aspects of their topic. It differs from a footnoted bibliography, which is
a list of resources with individual recaps. If you have limited time to conduct research, literature
reviews can give you an overview or act as a stepping stone. 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.
A methodological scope will influence either the types of documents in the review or the way in
which these documents are discussed. Literature search -- finding materials relevant to the subject
being explored. 3. Data evaluation -- determining which literature makes a significant contribution to
the understanding of the topic. 4. Analysis and interpretation -- discussing the findings and
conclusions of pertinent literature. How relevant is this short article to my specific topic. What are
the strengths and weaknesses of the various methodologies. For example, the resources available
through JGME include several articles on writing. 17 The journal Perspectives on Medical Education
recently launched “The Writer's Craft,” which is intended to help medical educators improve their
writing. This will allow you to use your time effectively and maintain a consistent research
publication schedule.If your thesis contains sufficient data, it may be beneficial to transform it into a
comprehensive literature review paper with additional effort.To create a literature review article,
incorporate relevant topics into your research that pertain to a specific problem area. However, if you
choose this strategy, be careful to avoid simply listing and summarising sources in order. Body:
Contains your discussion of sources and is organized either chronologically, thematically, or
methodologically (see below for more information on each). That is because the survey nature of the
literature review does not allow for in-depth discussion or detailed quotes from the text. To obtain
the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility
mode in Internet Explorer). Once you have the basic categories in place, then you must consider how
you will present the sources themselves within the body of your paper. By understanding the goals of
a literature review and following a few basic processes, authors can enhance both the quality of their
educational research and the likelihood of publication in the Journal of Graduate Medical Education
( JGME ) and in other journals. So, how should you structure your literature review. The scope of the
testimony will cover various aspects of the issue. While the study focuses on one topic, the Internet’s
impact on American presidential politics, it would still be organized chronologically reflecting
technological developments in media. Doing Your Literature Review: Traditional and Systematic
Techniques. The purpose is to develop a body of literature that establishes a contrarian viewpoint.
You do not have to examine every article ever written on your topic. But these articles refer to some
British biological studies performed on whales in the early 18th century. Development of the
Literature Review Four Basic Stages of Writing 1. The authors here recapitulate important features of
Hamilton’s study, but then synthesize it by rephrasing the study’s significance and relating it to their
own work. How well do they present the material and do they portray it according to an appropriate
theory. We identify and problematize 275 review articles that claim to critically review a body of
literature and find that most to not deliver on this claim. Video Say more by seamlessly including
video within your publication. In the 1 5th century, Europeans began shifting from Latin to using the
continent’s modern languages more widely. When writing your review, keep in mind these issues. As
it is chronological, this approach allows the reader to clearly see how you perceive the logical
progression, and stages within the development, and further, how you intend to carry that research
forward. When selecting references for the introduction consider those that illustrate core
background theoretical and methodological concepts, as well as recent relevant studies. In a research
paper, you use the literature as a foundation and as support for a new insight that you contribute. By
the same token, a review of previously conducted studies might lend itself to researchers determining
a new angle for approaching research.
Determination of methodologies used in past studies of the same or similar topics. Or, does is merely
add more of the same thing being said. For instance, you might explain that your review includes
only peer-reviewed articles and journals. In other words, a chronological review would have
subsections for each vital time period; a thematic review would have subtopics based upon factors
that relate to the theme or issue. For example, if your topic is smoke-free policies in U.S. prisons, you
might have the following sections in your literature review: types of smoke-free policies in place,
impact of policies on inmate health, implementation of policies, compliance with policies, inmate
smoking after release and finally sorting through all of the above and finding the gaps in the
knowledge on which you will base your research. The only proofreading tool specialized in correcting
academic writing The academic proofreading tool has been trained on 1000s of academic texts and
by native English editors. But if you find yourself wanting to put in more quotes, check with your
instructor. If the same thing is being said, just by different people, then this likely demonstrates that
the research problem has hit a conceptual dead end. For each publication, ask yourself: What
question or problem is the author addressing. Citation is defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as
“the action of citing or quoting any words or written passage, quotation”. Introduction: Gives a
quick idea of the topic of the literature review, such as the central theme or organizational pattern.
Identifies methods that may be relevant to your project. What are some strategies or tips I can use
while writing my lit review. Taking a step back from trying to decipher scientific jargon can help
readers who don’t usually delve into scientific research understand complex, complicated topics. As
with any other source, be wary of any government website that seems to be pushing an agenda. A
Final Checklist Have you indicated the purpose of the review. 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. Further Readings Generative AI and Writing USC Libraries Tutorials and Other
Guides Bibliography A literature review surveys prior research published in books, scholarly articles,
and any other sources relevant to a particular issue, area of research, or theory, and by so doing,
provides a description, summary, and critical evaluation of these works in relation to the research
problem being investigated. In addressing these points, you argue for your place in the conversation,
which tends to make the lit review more compelling than a simple reporting of other sources.
Consider Whether Your Sources are Current Some disciplines require that you use information that is
as current as possible. By reading about these topics, they can develop an understanding of what
research has been conducted on the topic and how it has been conducted. Literature Review Helps
Comparing Different Studies A literature review helps researchers to compare and contrast existing
research on a particular topic to draw better conclusions from it. When you’re passionate about a
topic, or you’ve spent extensive time learning about something new, it can be exciting to compile
your knowledge, especially if you’re nearing the end of a course of study. What are the central
themes and categories used by the researchers. History: The chronological progression of the field,
the research literature, or an idea that is necessary to understand the literature review, if the body of
the literature review is not already a chronology. The authors here recapitulate important features of
Hamilton’s study, but then synthesize it by rephrasing the study’s significance and relating it to their
own work. We’ve covered literature review structure in detail previously, so I won’t go into it here.
In other words, this is where you’re going to earn (or lose) the most marks. The main proponent of
the theory is Cheris Kramarae. For example, the resources available through JGME include several
articles on writing. 17 The journal Perspectives on Medical Education recently launched “The
Writer's Craft,” which is intended to help medical educators improve their writing.