Review of Related

Literature and Studies

Dr. Godfrey G. Mendoza
Maestro
Background of the Study
 The background of the study  provide context
to the information discussed throughout
the research paper. 
 Background information may include both

important and relevant studies.

 This is particularly important if a study either

supports or refutes the thesis. https

://www.enago.com/academy/what-is-backgr
ound-in-a-research-paper
/. Sep 13, 2017
Guidelines in Formulating the
Background of Study
1. Describe the problem situation considering
Global, National, and/or Local Forces
whenever applicable.
2. Link the situation to an existing body of
knowledge where applicable, present
historical developments leading to the
occurrence of the situation. Preferably cite
statistics and authoritative sources to
supports the idea.
3. Make a “clinching statement” that will relate
the background of the research problem.
Purposes of the Literature Review
1. To determine what is already known about
the topic that you wish to study. Research is
ongoing process that builds on previous
knowledge. There are very few topics so
rare that they have never been investigated.
2. To help plan the study methodology.
Appropriate research methods and research
tools for the study may be selected after
reading the accounts of other studies. The
researcher may be able to capitalize on the
successes as well as the failures of other
investigators.
Primary and Secondary Sources
Literature sources may be classified as
Primary or Secondary Sources
Primary Sources
 A primary or original source in the research literature is a
description of a research study written by the original
investigator(s).
 Frequently found in journal articles.

1. Nursing Research.
2. Advances in Nursing Science.
3. Applied Nursing Research.
4. Biological Research for Nursing.
5. Clinical Nursing Research.
6. Nursing Science Quarterly.
7. Research in Gerontological Nursing.
8. Research in Nursing and Health.
9. Western Journal of Nursing Research.
10. Worldviews on Evidence-Based Nursing.
11. Others.
Secondary Sources
 A secondary source is a summary or description of a
research study written by someone other than the study
investigator(s).
 Secondary sources were created by someone who
did not experience first-hand or participate in the events or
conditions you’re researching. For a historical research
project, secondary sources are generally scholarly books and
articles.
 A secondary source interprets and analyzes primary sources.
These sources are one or more steps removed from the
event.
 Secondary sources may contain pictures, quotes or graphics
of primary sources.
 Some types of secondary source include:  Textbooks; journal
articles; histories; criticisms; commentaries; encyclopedias 
Examples of secondary sources include:
1. A scholarly journal article about the history
of cardiology.
2. A current physics textbook.
3. A book about the psychological effects of
WWI.
4. A biographical dictionary of women in
science.
5. An April 2007 newspaper or magazine
article on anti-aging trends
 For a historical research project, secondary

sources are most often scholarly books and

articles.
Literature Sources
 The beginning researcher may be tempted to rely
on secondary sources. Oftentimes, summaries of
studies or theories (Literature Map) are quicker to
read and easier to understand than the original
works. Secondary sources may provide valuable
insight into the material, but it is the original or
primary source that should be read, when
possible. There is always a danger that the
author of a secondary source may misinterpret
information or leave out important information
that might be valuable to the reader.
 Try to begin your search with the most recent

primary sources.
GREY Literature
 Grey Literature, also called gray literature, can be defined as
any document that is not commercially published and is not
usually indexed or made available in the major databases.
 Grey literature generally includes conference proceedings,

dissertations, theses, technical reports, and unpublished

research reports.
1. Many research reports never get published because there
were no significant findings.
2. Researchers are reluctant to submit a manuscript for this
type of study because journal reviewers are unlikely to
recommend publication of these manuscripts.
3. Finally, journal editors are less likely to publish non-
significant findings than significant findings.
Note: Because of this publication bias, grey literature has
become increasingly important, particularly in systematic
reviews and meta-analysis studies.
Print Sources
1. Indexes – print source that contain reference
materials on periodicals and some books. Printed
indexes are library resources that provide
assistance in obtaining journal articles and other
publications related to a topic of interest.
a. Cumulative Index to Nursing & Allied Health
Literature (CINAHL) – online index source.
- CINAHL Database, CINAHL Plus, CINAHL with
Full Text, CINAHL Plus with Full Text.
b. Index Medicus – well-known index of medical
literature. It includes nursing and some other allied
health fields. This database can be searched online
through MEDLINE.
2. Abstracts – contain brief summaries of
articles. Research abstracts contain the
purpose, methods, and major findings of
studies. By reading abstracts of studies, the
researcher can determine whether to obtain a
copy of the entire research study.
a. Nursing Research Abstracts
b. Psychological Abstracts (APA)
c. Dissertation Abstracts International (DAI)
d. Master Abstracts International (MAI)
Electronic Sources
 Electronic sources have become the preferred
format for accessing the literature. Electronic
communication is changing how information
is retrieved and disseminated, and it is also
impacting the communication of research
results.
 Electronic sources include online catalogs and

online databases.
Online Catalogs
 Also called as “card catalog”.
 The online catalog contains an alphabetical listing

of books under several different categories such as

title, author, subject heading, and keyword. A
keyword search finds the word(s) anywhere in the
item record; this type of search is much broader
than a subject heading search.
 The records obtained in a keyword search are

usually arranged by relevance rather than

alphabetically.
1. Online Computer Library Center (OCLC).
2. e-books (NetLibrary, Ebrary, and Google Scholar).
Online Databases
 Online Sources and Search Engines.
1. Browser (Internet Explorer, Chrome, and Firefox).
2. Search Engine (Yahoo, Google, Lycos, WebCrawler,
Alta Vista, Excite, Scirus, and Google Scholar.
3. Megasearch engines (Bing, Comodo, Dragon,
Dogpile, Mamma, Metacrawler, and Surfwax).
4. MEDLINE
5. Embase
6. Biosis.
7. DISSERTATION ABSTRACTS ONLINE.
8. ETOH.
9. SCI EXPANDED-SSCI
Registry of Nursing Research
 Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society
of Nursing makes this available through its
Virginia Henderson International Nursing
Library.
 The research abstracts can be found through

several search fields: title of the study, last

name of the primary investigator, and key
word(s) in the abstract.
 Free access to this database can be found at

http://nursinglibrary.org/.
Cochrane Database of Systematic
Review
 Cochrane reviews examine the best evidence that is
available in the literature about health care interventions.
 This reviews examine the evidence for and against the
effectiveness of certain treatments (medications, surgery,
education, etc.) for many health care problems such as
breast cancer. Abstracts are available free of charge on the
Cochrane Library Web site.
 The Cochrane Reviews database is available directly from
the Cochrane Library at http://www.cochrane.org/reviews/.
 The database is published by the Cochrane Collaboration,
which is an international network of individuals and
institutions that prepare, maintain, and disseminate
systematic reviews of the effects of health care. More than
4,000 reviews are available.
ERIC
 The ERIC database is the world’s largest source of
education information. It is sponsored by the Institute
of Education Sciences (IES) of the US Department of
Education.
 ERIC provides a comprehensive, easy-to-use, Internet-
based bibliographic and full-text database of
education research and education-related information.
 This database contains more than 1.3 million
bibliographic records (March 2010) of journal articles
and other education-based material, as well as some
links to full-text articles.
 Free public access to this database is available at
http://eric.ed.org/.
PsycINFO
 The American Psychological Association prepares
the PsycINFO database.
 It covers literature from psychology and related
disciplines, one of which is nursing. It now contains
quite a few nursing journals, such as Advances in
Nursing Science, Cancer Nursing, Clinical Nursing
Research, Journal of Nursing Measurement, Journal
of Nursing Scholarship, and Nursing Research.
 This database contains more than 2.8 million
records dating from 1800s to the present and is
updated weekly.
 This service is available at
http://apa.org/pubs/databases/access/direct.aspx.
Dissertation Abstracts Online
 DISSERTATION ABSTRACTS ONLINE is produced by
ProQuest Information and Learning.
 Citations for these dissertations and these are

included in the online database and in four

University of Microfilms International (UMI) print
publications: Dissertation Abstracts International
(DAI), American Doctoral Dissertations (ADD),
Comprehensive Dissertations Index (CDI), and
Masters Abstracts International (MAI).
 A search can be done by subject, title, or author

to nearly every American dissertation accepted at

an accredited institution since 1861.
 It contains 2.2 million records.
ProQuest Nursing & Allied Health
Source
 ProQuest Nursing & Allied Health Source
provides reliable health care information that
covers nursing, allied health, and alternative
and complementary medicine.
 Abstracting and indexing are provided for

more than 850 titles, with 715 titles in full

text.
Other Online Databases
 Many other online databases can be searched
for free by nurses. These include the following:
1. AIDSinfo (HIV/AIDS Information)
http://aidsinfo.nih.gov/
2. Haz-Map (Hazardous Agents)
http://hazmap.nlm.nih.gov
3. ClinicalTrials (database on access to clinical
trials) http://clinicaltrials.gov
4. TOXNET (Toxicology Data Network)
http://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov/
Online Journals
 Online journals are often called e-journals – is a digital periodical
published on the Internet or Web.
 Online magazines are called e-zines.

1. Online Journal of Issue in Nursing.

2. American Journal of Nursing.
3. Advances in Nursing Science.
4. Cancer Nursing.
5. Dimensions of Critical Care Nursing.
6. Holistic Nursing Practice.
7. Journal of Cardiovascular Nursing.
8. Journal of Hospice and Palliative Nursing.
9. Journal of Nursing Administration.
10. MCN: The American Journal of Maternal Child Nursing.
11. Nursing Management.

12. Nursing Research.

13. Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).

14. New England Journal of Medicine.

15. Annals of Internal Medicine.

16. For more information, visit: http://freedmedicaljournals.com.
Review of Related Literature
and Studies
 Review of related literature and studies is
presented in Chapter 2 for 5 Chapters or
Chapter 1 for 4 Chapters of a research paper,
thesis, and dissertation and has four sections
of this Chapter. These sections are
(1) Review or Related Legal Basis,
(2) Review of Related Literature,
(3) Review of Related Studies, and
(4) Justification of the Present Study.
Guidelines for Reviewing the Literature
in the Process of Research:
1. Locate Resources
a. Books
b. Journals
c. Electronic Resources
2. Select Resources
d. Determine the relevant resources for the
topic.
e. Organize the resources by developing a
“Literature Map”
3. Summarize the resources in a “Literature
Review”.
Related Legal Basis
 Is taken from constitutions, laws, orders,
circulars, memorandums, department orders,
directives, charters, resolutions and many
others which have direct bearing to the
present study.
 These sources serve as legal bases for the

paradigm of the study having direct or indirect

implications to the government’s thrusts.
 Related legal bases are presented in
chronological order either from present to past
or past to present. It is advisable to present
them from present to past.
Related Literature
 Sources are taken from published materials
like books, journals, magazines, poetry,
novels, and many others.
 Related literature is also presented
chronological order either from present to
past or past to present. But the former is
more preferable.
 Moreover, for every related literature
presented there is an equivalent explanation
of it. It is unscientific if no explanation of the
relevance of the related literature to the
present study.
Related Studies
 The sources of related studies are published
and unpublished research papers, theses and
dissertations.
 They are segregated into foreign and local

studies and are arranged from latest to the

past or past to recent.
Foreign Studies
 Global and International Related Studies.
 The foregoing foreign related studies are

arranged in chronological order and

explanation of the relevance to the present
study is presented.
Local Studies
 National,Regional, and Local Related Studies.
 It can be gleaned that the foregoing related

studies are arranged in chronological order

from recent to past and each related study
has explanation on the relevance of the
present study.
Justification of the Present Studies
 Justification of the present study is the fourth
or last section of a research paper, thesis and
dissertation.
 The researcher should justify the bearing of

the related study as well as the similarities

and differences of the present study to the
related studies.
References:
1. Nursing Research
2. Nursing Outlook
3. Nursing Science
4. Nursing Forum
5. Journal of Nursing Education
6. International Nursing Review
7. American Journal of Nursing
8. Hospital, Journal of American
Hospital Association
9. Journal of Health and Human Behavior
10. American Journal of Public Health
11. Public Health Reports
12. Hospital Progress
13. Modern Hospital
14. Hospital Management
15. Journal of Nursing Service
Administration
Philippines:
1. Academy of Nursing in the Philippines
(ANPHI)
2. News gazette of the Department of
Health National League of Nurses.
3. Philippine Journal of Nursing
4. Journals of the Nursing Interest
Associations
5. Accredited agencies (PNA, ORNAP,
MCNAP, ANSAP, ETNAP and other
agencies).
End of the topic…next topic…
Chapter 2
The Design and Planning Phase