What is a Literature Review?A literature review surveys, summarizes, critically analyzes, compares, and synthesizes multiple scholarly works, or published knowledge on a particular topic or specific subject area.
Literature can include peer-reviewed or scholarly articles, books/ ebooks, conference proceedings, theses/ dissertations, documents published by governmental agencies and non-profit organizations, and other forms of gray literature.
Conducting a literature review is part of the research process and serves to establish a base of knowledge and overview of the principal works on a specific area of research as well as identify important themes, discoveries, areas of consensus and debate, changes over time, and provide a foundation for further research.
A literature review may be written to:
What kinds of sources require a Literature Review?
All these instances require you to collect what has been written about your research topic so that you can demonstrate how your own research sheds new light on the topic.
The following are common types of literature reviews:
Narrative or Traditional Review
The purpose of this type of review is to describe the current state of the research on a specific topic/research and to offer a critical analysis of the literature reviewed. Studies are grouped by research/theoretical categories, and themes and trends, strengths and weakness, and gaps are identified. The review ends with a conclusion section which summarizes the findings regarding the state of the research of the specific study, the gaps identify and if applicable, explains how the author's research will address gaps identify in the review and expand the knowledge on the topic reviewed.
Systematic Review
The authors of a systematic review use a specific procedure to search the research literature, select the studies to include in their review, and critically evaluate the studies they find.
Meta-analysis
This type of review utilizes quantitative methods to combine the results of independent studies and synthesize summaries and conclusions which can be used to evaluate therapeutic effectiveness, plan new studies, etc.
Meta-synthesis
A meta-synthesis is a type of qualitative study that uses as data the findings from other qualitative studies linked by the same or related topic.
Further Reading on Different Types of Literature Reviews
Grant, M. J., & Booth, A. (2009). A typology of reviews: An analysis of 14 review types and associated methodologies. Health Information and Libraries Journal, 26(2), 91-108. doi:10.1111/j.1471-1842.2009.00848.x
Gough, D., Thomas, J., & Oliver, S. (2012). Clarifying differences between review designs and methods. Systematic Reviews, 1, 28. doi:10.1186/2046-4053-1-28
The library has a number of books on conducting and writing literature reviews:
The Literature Review by
The essential guide--updated, expanded, and easier to use than ever. Using the six-step model, you'll work seamlessly to narrow your research topic, focus your literature search, negotiate the myriad of books, periodicals, and reports about your topic--and, of course, write the review.
Writing the Literature Review by
This accessible text provides a roadmap for producing a high-quality literature review--an integral part of a successful thesis, dissertation, term paper, or grant proposal. Each step of searching for, evaluating, analyzing, and synthesizing prior studies is clearly explained and accompanied by user-friendly suggestions, organizational tips, vignettes, and examples of student work. Also featured are excerpts from peer-reviewed quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods articles. This is the first book to focus on crafting different types of reviews (systematic, traditional-narrative, or hermeneutic-phenomenological) that reflect the writer's research question, methodological choices, and approaches to knowledge.
Conducting Your Literature Review by
This book will help students formulate a strategy for making clear decisions about what to include and not include in their literature reviews, and avoid getting overwhelmed by the sheer volume of available research. It will also help them understand the steps that are needed to produce a reliable and unbiased summary of the existing research.
Doing a Literature Review in Health and Social Care : A Practical Guide by
This new edition provides a step-by-step guide to doing a literature review for students in all areas of health and social care. It is essential reading for all those doing their undergraduate dissertation or any study that involves doing a literature review. The new edition maintains its signature 'can do' approach and provides a practical guide to doing a literature review from start to finish. This book includes: * A broad and updated range of real life examples of how to overcome challenges in the process * Tips on how to get your question right * Updated guidance on following a clear search strategy for relevant literature using the appropriate technology
Writing Literature Reviews by
This useful guide educates students in the preparation of literature reviews for term projects, theses, and dissertations. The authors provide numerous examples from published reviews that illustrate the guidelines discussed throughout the book. 　 New to the seventh edition: 　 Each chapter breaks down the larger holistic review of literature exercise into a series of smaller, manageable steps Practical instructions for navigating today's digital libraries Comprehensive discussions about digital tools, including bibliographic and plagiarism detection software Chapter activities that reflect the book's updated content New model literature reviews Online resources designed to help instructors plan and teach their courses
Dissertations and Theses from Start to Finish by
Dissertations and Theses From Start to Finish, now updated and revised to reflect changes to the APA's Publication Manual, Seventh Edition! For over twenty-five years, Cone and Foster's useful book has guided student writers through the practical, logistical, and emotional struggles that come with writing dissertations and theses. It offers guidance to students through all the essential steps, including: Defining topics; Selecting faculty advisors; Scheduling time to work on the project, and; Conducting, analyzing, writing, presenting, and publishing research. This third edition of this bestselling work follows new guidelines from APA's Publication Manual, Seventh Edition, and includes questions to help steer research, checklists, diagrams, and sample research papers. It also reflects the most recent advances in online research and includes fully updated online resources. Each chapter begins with an Advance Organizer that offers an at-a-glance summary of chapter content and applicability for different types of readers. Chapters also include significantly expanded To Do and Supplemental Resource lists, as well as helpful suggestions for dealing with common "traps" that recur throughout the writing process. The authors also consider the variety of roles faculty advisors play, and of variations in the thesis and dissertation process and requirements across institutions of higher learning.
eBooks on Conducting Systematic Literature Reviews:
Systematic Reviews in the Social Sciences by
Such diverse thinkers as Lao-Tze, Confucius, and U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld have all pointed out that we need to be able to tell the difference between real and assumed knowledge. The systematic review is a scientific tool that can help with this difficult task. It can help, for example, with appraising, summarising, and communicating the results and implications of otherwise unmanageable quantities of data. This book, written by two highly-respected social scientists, provides an overview of systematic literature review methods: Outlining the rationale and methods of systematic reviews; Giving worked examples from social science and other fields; Applying the practice to all social science disciplines; It requires no previous knowledge, but takes the reader through the process stage by stage; Drawing on examples from such diverse fields as psychology, criminology, education, transport, social welfare, public health, and housing and urban policy, among others. Including detailed sections on assessing the quality of both quantitative, and qualitative research; searching for evidence in the social sciences; meta-analytic and other methods of evidence synthesis; publication bias; heterogeneity; and approaches to dissemination.
Systematic Reviews in Educational Research: Methodology, Perspectives and Application by 