Definition. A literature review is
a comprehensive summary of previous research on a topic
. The literature review surveys scholarly articles, books, and other sources relevant to a particular area of research. The review should enumerate, describe, summarize, objectively evaluate and clarify this previous research.
What exactly is a literature review?
The literature review is
a written overview of major writings and other sources on a selected topic
. Sources covered in the review may include scholarly journal articles, books, government reports, Web sites, etc. The literature review provides a description, summary and evaluation of each source.
What is the literature review in research?
Definition. A literature review is
a comprehensive summary of previous research on a topic
. The literature review surveys scholarly articles, books, and other sources relevant to a particular area of research. The review should enumerate, describe, summarize, objectively evaluate and clarify this previous research.
What is literature review and example?
1. A literature review is
a survey of scholarly sources that provides an overview of a particular topic
. It generally follows a discussion of the paper’s thesis statement or the study’s goals or purpose. *This sample paper was adapted by the Writing Center from Key, K.L., Rich, C., DeCristofaro, C., Collins, S.
How do you write a literature review?
- Narrow your topic and select papers accordingly.
- Search for literature.
- Read the selected articles thoroughly and evaluate them.
- Organize the selected papers by looking for patterns and by developing subtopics.
- Develop a thesis or purpose statement.
- Write the paper.
- Review your work.
What a literature review is not?
A literature review is NOT:
is
a brief critical discussion about the merits and weaknesses of a particular book
. Book reviews of creative works are sometimes called literary reviews. Scholarly books are also reviewed by other scholars. Scholarly book reviews are often published in scholarly journals.
What are the four major goals of a literature review?
To determine what exists in the scholarly literature. To identify possible gap(s) in the scholarly
literature for further research
.
To inform the research topic, theory (if applicable), and associated methodology
.
To compare/contrast against findings resulting from the current study
.
How long is a literature review?
For a written literature review document, the size of a written literature review document should be
between 2000-3000 words
. But the size of a written literature review depends on many factors which are the area study of a written literature review document.
How many sources should a literature review have?
If your literature review is a stand-alone document
Example: A stand-alone literature review that has 10 pages of content (the body of the paper) should examine
at least 30 sources
. These are not hard and fast rules by any means.
What is the aim of a literature review?
A literature review
establishes familiarity with and understanding of current research in a particular field before carrying out a new investigation
. Conducting a literature review should enable you to find out what research has already been done and identify what is unknown within your topic.
What a literature review looks like?
A literature review discusses published information in a particular subject area, and sometimes information in a particular subject area within a certain time period. A literature review can be just a simple summary of the sources, but it usually has an
organizational pattern and combines both summary and synthesis
.
How do you start a literature review example?
- Make a list of keywords. Start by creating a list of keywords related to your research question. …
- Search for relevant sources. Use your keywords to begin searching for sources. …
- Take notes and cite your sources. …
- Chronological. …
- Thematic. …
- Methodological. …
- Theoretical. …
- Introduction.
How do you write an introduction for a literature review?
- Introduce the topic.
- Establish the significance of the study.
- Provide an overview of the relevant literature.
- Establish a context for the study using the literature.
- Identify knowledge gaps.
- Illustrate how the study will advance knowledge on the topic.
What are the five steps in conducting a literature review?
- Choose a topic. Define your research question. …
- Decide on the scope of your review. How many studies do you need to look at? …
- Select the databases you will use to conduct your searches. Make a list of the databases you will search. …
- Conduct your searches and find the literature. …
- Review the literature.
When starting your literature review what is the first step?
The first step is
defining your task — choosing a topic and noting the questions you have about the topic
. This will provide a focus that guides your strategy in step II and will provide potential words to use in searches in step III. 2. Develop a strategy.
