Lulu Eva Rakhmilla, dr., MKMEpidemiology and Biostatistics Department

“Is an account of what has been published on a topic by accredited scholars and researchers” (Dena Taylor, Director, Health Sciences Writing Centre,and Margaret Procter, Coordinator, Writing Support, University of Toronto).

“Discusses published information in a particular subject area, and sometimes information in a particular subject area within a certain time period” (University of North Carolina website).

“Is a body of text that aims to review the critical points of current knowledge on a particular topic” (Wikipedia).

“A Literature Review is surveys scholarlyarticles, books, and other sources (e.g.,dissertations, conference proceedings) relevantto a topic for a minor thesis. Its purpose is todemonstrate that the writer has insightfully andcritically surveyed relevant literature on his orher topic in order to convince an intendedaudience that the topic is worth addressing”

~from Writing the Successful Thesis and Dissertation: Entering the Discussion

By Irene L. Clark

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Literature reviews provide you with a handy guide to a particular topic. If you have limited time to conduct research, literature reviews can give you an overview or act as a stepping stone.

Literature reviews also provide a solid background for a research paper's investigation. Comprehensive knowledge of the literature of the field is essential to most research papers.

An annotated bibliography A list of seemingly unrelated sources A literary survey containing author’s bio, lists of

works, summaries of sources Background information or explanations of

concepts An argument for the importance of your

research (although the LR can and often does support your position)

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A ‘good’ literature review…..

….. is a synthesis of available research ….. is a critical evaluation ….. has appropriate breadth and depth ….. has clarity and conciseness ….. uses rigorous and consistent methods

A ‘poor’ literature review is…..

…..an annotated bibliography ….. confined to description ….. narrow and shallow ….. confusing and longwinded ….. constructed in an arbitrary way

Bring clarity and focus to your research problem

Improve your methodologyBroaden your knowledge base in

your research area

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The whole process of reviewing includes:a. Searching for literatureb. Sorting and prioritising the retrieved literaturec. Analytical reading of papersd. Evaluative reading of paperse. Comparison across studiesf. Organising the contentg. Writing the review

Formulate problem or primary research question—which topic or field is being examined and what are its component issues?

Choose literature —find materials relevant to the subject being explored and determine which literature makes a significant contribution to the understanding of the topic .

Analyze and interpret —note the findings and conclusions of pertinent literature, how each contributes to your field .

Methods for organizing the Lit Review

By subject (if lit review covers more than one subject)

Chronologically By theme, idea, trend, theory, or major research

studies By author By argumentative stance

In all methods, relationships between elements (e.g., subject, theme, author, etc.) must be shown.

Data and information from any books, article,magazines, and news papers. Must be also organized to cover specific problems. Must take all the evidences about the problem with

the author’s experiences. As much as possible, get the latest published

materials. Avoid old published materials. It must be related to your topic. If not, do not get it. On the last part of this part you must have a

statement how this old unpublished material helps the researcher in their current study. And relate this to your study.

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Key points for a review may concern areas of similarities and/or differences in:

Research aim(s) or hypotheses Research design and sampling Instruments and procedures used How data were analysed Results or findings Interpretations

Comparison across studiesThe aim is to extract key points by comparing and contrasting ACROSS studies, instead of reading one paper after another.

Ongoing “housekeeping” strategies and tips Immediately document and cite source you

took the information from Bookmark online sources. Bookmark “hard copy.” Use post-it notes to

mark pages with relevant information. Keep track of page numbers of paraphrases and

quotations. Note any connections between sources in

separate notebook or on post-its on pertinent pages.

If information comes from a class lecture, interview, or conference, note details immediately.

Introduce your LR byDefining or explaining the primary problem addressed by the minor thesis and thus, by the sources you choose

ORExplaining main conflict(s) in the literature

ORExplaining the time frame you will review

OROffer a rationale for your choice of source material

ORUsing all or some of the points.

Use subheadings if dividing the LR topically, thematically, according to argumentative perspective, or according to time period.

Be sure to show relationships between sources.

Make explicit connections between reviewed sources and minor thesis.

Discuss source’s significant contributions.

Do not develop ideas or use sources that are irrelevant to your minor thesis overall.

References to prior studies should be in past tense; references to narrative or text other than studies should be in present tense.

Summarize ideas, conflicts, themes, or historical (or chronological) periods.

Contextualize your minor thesis topic within the summary.

Point out gap(s) and show how your research helps fill the gap(s).

Transition to your next chapter.

Have I accurately represented the author’s views?

Is source material research current and relevant to minor thesis topic?

Have I shown relationships between sources? Is there a clear connection between minor thesis

topic and the LR? Are all sources documented accurately? Have I used effective transitions from idea to

idea, source to source, paragraph to paragraph? Is my analysis of sources well developed? Have I represented all conflicts or argumentative

sides fairly?

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Set out your thinking on paper through mapsand trees.

Feature map Classifies and categorises your thought in tabular form

Concept map Links between concepts and processes, or shows relationship between ideas and practice

Tree construction

Shows how topic branches out into subthemes and related questions or represents stages in the development of a topic.

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Sentences Express one idea in a sentence. Ensure that all your sentences have a subject, verb and object.

Paragraphs Group sentences that express and develop one aspect of your topic. Use a new paragraph for another aspect or another topic.

Consistent Grammar

Use sentences and paragraphs with appropriate use of commas, colours and semi-colours. Incorrect use of punctuation can affect the meaning.

Transition Words

Use words that link paragraphs and which show contrast and development to your argument e.g. ‘hence’, ‘therefore’, ‘but’, ‘thus’, ‘as a result’, ‘in contrast’.

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Vagueness due to too much or inappropriate generalisations

Limited range Insufficient information Irrelevant material Omission of contrasting view Omission of recent work

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Fertility trends, theories, some of indices and critiques of them, factors affecting fertility, methods of controlling fertility, , factors affecting acceptance of contraceptive, etc

Mortality factors affecting mortality, mortality indices and their sensitivity in measuring change in mortality level of population, trends

The relationship theories that have been put forward to explain the relationship, implications of the relationship

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Fertility theories The theory of demographic transition Trends in fertility (global, narrow national yo

local)Methods of contraception (acceptance,

effctiveness) Factors afecting mortality (and implications)Measurement of mortality indices (their

sensitivity) Relationships between fertility and mortality

(different theories insurance, fear of non sirvival, replacement, price, utility,risk)

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A literature review is evaluation of selected documents on a research topic.

A review may form an essential part of the research process or may constitute a research project in itself.

The literature review is a critical synthesis of previous research.

The evaluation of the literature leads logically to the research question.

A literature review is not a shopping list of everything that exists,

It demonstrates the relevance of the research.

1. Clark, Irene L. Writing the Successful Thesis and Dissertation: Entering the Conversation. Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall, 2007.

2. Glatthorn, Allan A. and Randy L. Joyner. Writing the Winning Thesis or Dissertation: a Step by Step Guide 2nd

ed. Thousand Oaks: Corwin, 2005.

3. Madsen, David. Successful Dissertations and Theses: a Guide to Graduate Student Research from Proposal to Completion 2nd ed. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1992.

4. Purdue OWL. Purdue Online Writing Lab, Purdue U. 19 Mar. 2007 <http://owl. english.purdue.edu/workshops/hypertext/ apa/interact/lit/index.html>

© draconisVH Flickr.com

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“Piles of these materials are stacked all around, on desks, tables, and floor, and they [students] have diligently read their way through most of them, taking copious notes—computers bulge with information and threaten to explode”

~Irene L. Clark, Writing the Successful Thesis and Dissertation