literature review an overview for graduate students

• skip to Main Navigation
• skip to Main Content
• skip to Footer
• Accessibility feedback

The bookBot at the Hunt Library will be out of service from November 1, 2024–January 3, 2025. Request bookBot materials through the Catalog before November 1 to receive them within one day. After that date, items stored in the bookBot will only be available via interlibrary loan.

Updated Oct 23 10:46am

Video: Literature Reviews: An Overview for Graduate Students

What is a literature review? What purpose does it serve in research? What should you expect when writing one? Find out here

Writing a literature review is an inevitable part of being a graduate student. So, before spending hours of your time working on a project involving a literature review, it helps to understand what a "literature review" is, and why it is important. 

You may need to do a literature review as a part of a course assignment, a capstone project, or a master's thesis or dissertation. No matter the context, a literature review is an essential part of the research process. 

Some important functions of a literature review are that it helps you to understand a research topic and develop your own perspective on a problem. Not only that, it lets you show your instructor or thesis committee what you know about the topic. 

Your instructor or advisor may assume you know what a literature review is and that you understand what they are expecting from you. You might hear phrases like: "What does the literature show us?" "Connect your ideas to the literature." "Survey the literature on the topic." 

Well, before you can review the literature, you need to make sure you know what is meant by "the literature." A good definition of the literature is that it is a collection of all the scholarly writings on a topic. These writings can be in the form of scholarly, peer reviewed articles, books, and other sources like conference proceedings. These may be called annual meetings or conventions. The literature also includes dissertations written by other graduate students. Collectively, these make up the literature. 

Visually, the literature might look like this. Often there are major works that have been written on a topic, and then other, later, works that build on them. These later works tend to be extending or responding to the original papers in some way. Basically, the literature is a continuously evolving network of scholarly works that interact with each other. 

As you do your own research, you'll begin to understand the relationships in this evolving web and how your own ideas connect to it. 

I'm John Classen, Associate Professor of Biological and Agricultural Engineering at North Carolina State University. Research is about telling a story, kind of like a chain story where each writer starts with a partial story created by others and takes it where the imagination leads. The existing literature is the story so far. You have to know where you are before you can go forward. But research is not just one linear story; many different lines of study contribute to the story you are trying to write. 

Your job in the literature review is to see where all the loose ends are in the various fields that are most closely related to what you want to do and to figure out what needs to be done next. The background to any good story has to be explained carefully or the reader doesn't know why one thing is important and something else is not; the reader has to understand what's going on. 

In the same way, researchers need the background in the literature of their discipline to know what's going on in their field of study. So, how do you turn a network of articles into a cohesive review of the literature? How do you find and tell the "story" behind your research topic? 

Reviewing the literature is like participating in a conversation. As you read and evaluate articles you begin to understand how they are connected and how they form the story that the authors are telling. Then you start to formulate your own response or contribution. 

This process - discovering relationships in the literature and developing and connecting your own ideas to it - is what helps you turn a network of articles into a coherent review of the literature. 

So what does a literature review look like? There are different types of literature reviews that you may encounter, or be required to write, while in graduate school. Literature reviews can range from being selective to comprehensive. They can also be part of a larger work or stand alone. 

A course assignment is an example of a selective review. It focuses on a small segment of the literature on a topic and makes up the entire work. The literature review in a thesis or dissertation is an example of a comprehensive review that is part of a larger work. 

Most research articles begin with a selective literature review to establish the context for the research reported in the paper. Often this is part of the introduction. Other literature reviews are meant to be fairly comprehensive and also to stand alone. This means that the entire article is devoted to reviewing the literature. 

A literature review that introduces an article can look like this. Here is an article about cognitive behavioral therapy. Here is the literature review, in this article it is part of the introduction. You can tell that the introduction includes a literature review because it discusses important research that has already been published on this topic. 

Here is an example of a stand alone literature review article, in this case, about employment. The article's title states that this is a review of the literature on the topic. However, not all review articles will have the term 'literature review' in their title. In-depth review articles like this are an excellent starting place for research on a topic. 

So, at this point, you may be asking yourself just what's involved in writing a literature review? And how do I get started? 

Writing a literature review is a process with several key steps. Let's look at each part of this process in more detail. 

Your first step involves choosing, exploring, and focusing a topic. At this stage you might discover that you need to tweak your topic or the scope of your research as you learn more about the topic in the literature. Then, of course, you'll need to do some research using article databases, the library catalog, Google Scholar, and other sources to find scholarly information. 

All along you'll be using your brain. You'll want to evaluate what you find and select articles, books, and other publications that will be the most useful. Then, you will need to read through these articles and try to understand, analyze, and critique what you read. 

While researching and organizing your paper, you'll collect a lot of information from many different sources. You can use citation management software like RefWorks, EndNote, or Zotero to help you stay organized. Then, of course, you'll need to write and revise your paper and create your final bibliography. 

One more thing: Writing a literature review is a process, but it is not always a linear process. One step does lead to another, but sometimes your research or reading will point you back to earlier steps as you learn more about your topic and the literature. 

At this point you might be wondering how do I actually review the literature I find? Let's look at what it means to review the literature. 

In the most general sense it means that you collect and read all the relevant papers and other literature on your topic. You want to provide an overview but also highlight key concepts and important papers. As you read you may start by describing and summarizing each article. Then you can start to make connections by comparing and contrasting those papers. 

You will also need to evaluate, analyze, and organize the information from your reading. When you work with the literature you will read and critically examine articles and books to see what's important or out of scope and analyze arguments for strengths and weaknesses. 

When working with the literature it is important to look for relationships between publications. Some of the important relationships between publications that you discover might include major themes and important concepts, as well as critical gaps and disagreements. 

But don't fall into the trap of making your review a laundry list of summaries of the works you read. A literature review is not an annotated bibliography. 

Your goal should be to go one step further and integrate and synthesize what you find in the literature into something new. Ideally, you will create your own conceptual map or outline of the literature on your topic. 

For example, let's say as you read you discover three major concepts that are important in the literature and relevant to your research. You should then identify how the literature - that is, the content in individual articles, books, and other publications - relates to the concepts you discovered. Some publications may be relevant to several concepts; others may apply to only one concept. What's important is that you develop and present your own organization and understanding of the literature. 

Then, when you write your literature review you will end up with a document that is organized by the concepts and relationships you found and developed based on your reading and thinking. Your review will not only cover what's been published on your topic, but will include your own thoughts and ideas. You will be telling the specific story that sets the background and shows the significance of your research. 

Researching and writing a good literature review is a challenging and sometimes intimidating process. Don't be afraid to seek assistance, whether from your adviser or instructor, campus writing center, or your librarian. Many librarians have subject specialties and can be especially helpful in identifying valuable resources and showing you how to obtain relevant information.

Video added on January 15, 2020

• Eleanor Smith: Content development, scripting
• Kim Duckett: Screencasting, editing
• Sarah Bankston: Narration
• Dr. John Classen: Scripting, narration
• Andreas Orphanides : Web development
• Susan Baker: Graphics, animation, and web design

This video is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 United States license.

Opens in your default email client

URL copied to clipboard.

QR code for this page

Library Instructional Videos and Tutorials

• Citation: A (Very) Brief Introduction
• Evaluating Sources for Credibility
• From Idea to Library
• Get Full Text for an Article
• How to Renew Books Online
• The Information Cycle

Literature Reviews: An Overview for Graduate Students

• Peer Review in 3 Minutes
• Picking Your Topic IS Research
• Wikipedia: Beneath the Surface
• What is a Journal Article
• How to Read a Scholarly Journal Article
• Scholarly vs. Popular Articles
• How to Find Journal Articles - OneSearch
• How Do You Evaluate Journal Articles
• For Business
• Chemistry: Using SciFinder-n
• For the Social Sciences
• Find Videos on Other Topics
• Literacy, Language Arts, & Literature Studies

(9:38) Addresses the function and utility of reviews of the scholarly literature as well as the process of preparing a literature review. North Carolina State Univ. Libraries

• << Previous: The Information Cycle
• Next: Peer Review in 3 Minutes >>
• Last Updated: Sep 23, 2024 10:01 AM
• URL: https://uhcl.libguides.com/libinstvideos

How to Conduct a Literature Review: A Guide for Graduate Students

• Let's Get Started!
• Traditional or Narrative Reviews
• Systematic Reviews
• Typology of Reviews
• Literature Review Resources
• Developing a Search Strategy
• What Literature to Search
• Where to Search: Indexes and Databases
• Finding articles: Libkey Nomad
• Finding Dissertations and Theses
• Extending Your Searching with Citation Chains
• Forward Citation Chains - Cited Reference Searching
• Keeping up with the Literature
• Managing Your References
• Need More Information?

What is a Literature Review?

A literature review summarizes and synthesizes material on a research topic. It provides a summary of previous research and provides context for the material presented in your thesis. The literature review is your opportunity to show what you understand about your topic area, and distinguish previous research from the work you are doing. For example, your thesis may be building on an existing theory or model and extending it a new direction. It's important to provide context for your project by providing a roadmap to previous literature.

Purpose of a Literature Review

• Identifies gaps in current knowledge
• Helps you to avoid reinventing the wheel by discovering the research already conducted on a topic
• Sets the background on what has been explored on a topic so far
• Increases your breadth of knowledge in your area of research
• Helps you identify seminal works in your area
• Allows you to provide the intellectual context for your work and position your research with other, related research
• Provides you with opposing viewpoints
• Helps you to discover research methods which may be applicable to your work
• Research methods for post graduates Full cite: Greenfield (2002) Research Methods for postgraduates. 2nd Ed. London: Arnold
• A typology of reviews: an analysis of 14 review types and associated methodologies Full cite: Grant, M. J. and Booth, A. (2009), A typology of reviews: an analysis of 14 review types and associated methodologies. Health Information & Libraries Journal, 26, 91–108. doi:10.1111/j.1471-1842.2009.00848.x

Literature Reviews: An Overview for Graduate Students

This section adapted from The Literature Review, by Charles Stuart University Library. Available: https://libguides.csu.edu.au/review.

• << Previous: Let's Get Started!
• Next: Traditional or Narrative Reviews >>

The library's collections and services are available to all ISU students, faculty, and staff and Parks Library is open to the public .

• Last Updated: Aug 12, 2024 4:07 PM
• URL: https://instr.iastate.libguides.com/gradlitrev

• SSU Library Home
• Research Guides
• Help Using the Library

Writing a Literature Review

• Topic Scope
• Searching for Sources
• Reading & Analyzing the Literature
• Writing the Review
• Finding Help
• Citation Center
• Literature Review Workshop Documents
• Distance Learning

Meet Your Librarian

“A literature review is an assessment of a body of research that addresses a research question.”

Harvard Graduate School of Education.  (2016). The literature review: A research journey: Overview. Retrieved from

       http://guides.library.harvard.edu/c.php?g=310271&p=2071512

Literature Reviews: An Overview for Graduate Students

This video was created by North Carolina State University librarians and it is found at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2d7y_r65HU

It's Iterative!

Writing a literature review (or any research paper, really) is an iterative process -- meaning a writer repeats steps again and again. They don't select a topic, then research, and then write the paper without giving themselves freedom to jump back to a previous step. Based on your research you may revisit your topic. Or as you are writing, you may realize you need to do more research in an area. It's not a strictly linear process!

Finding Literature Review Articles

It may be helpful for you to look at some literature reviews that have been written. Sometimes you can simply use "literature review" as a search term and some of the articles in the result list will be literature reviews. However, some databases make it easier.

Here are a few databases and ways to find literature reviews indexed within them. When you are simply looking for examples of literature reviews, use a search term that is broader for now, like "bullying."

• ERIC (Ebscohost Interface) This link opens in a new window World's largest source of education information, containing abstracts of documents and scholarly journal articles on education research and practice. The database covers descriptions and evaluations of programs, research reports and surveys, curriculum and teaching guides, instructional materials, position papers, and resource materials. Many sources available full text. This interface allows researchers to use more limiters than does the public access interface.

In ERIC, type a keyword in the first search box. In the second search box,  type literature reviews and select "SU Descriptors" from the "Select a Field (optional)" dropdown box. Then click "Search."

• APA PsycINFO This link opens in a new window Abstracts and citations to scholarly literature in the psychological, social, behavioral, and health sciences. Includes scholarly journals, books/chapters, and dissertation abstracts -- much of it available full-text. Helpful source for researching interdisciplinary topics related to these fields. Coverage back to 17th century. Limiters offered include searching by age groups, population group, and methodology.

In PsycINFO, type a keyword in the search box. Then, if you look lower on the page, you'll see ways to limit the search. One option is "Methodology." In this list, select "Literature Review." Then click the orange "Search" box.

• PubMed This link opens in a new window Provides free access to MEDLINE, the National Library of Medicine database of more than 11 million bibliographic citations and abstracts in the fields of medicine, nursing, dentistry, veterinary medicine, health care systems, and preclinical sciences. Includes access to additional selected life sciences journals not in MEDLINE. Links to the full-text of articles at participating publishers web sites.

In PubMed, type your search term and then click "Search." On the result page you'll see the heading "Article types" on the left of the page. One option is "Review." Click this. Now your results should be all literature reviews.

• Web of Science Core Collection This link opens in a new window Multidisciplinary citation index with a collection of over 21,000 peer-reviewed scholarly journals. Allows citation searching. This includes discovery of how many times a particular author or article has been cited and by whom. Users can also find later works which cite a specific article, allowing tracing the development of a research path.

In Web of Science, type your search term in the search box and click "Search." On the left side of the page you'll see ways to Refine Results. One option is "Document Types." You'll probably see "Review" as one of these document types. Click that box and then the "Refine" button to the bottom right of the document type list. (You'll see Refine boxes up and down the left sidebar. Clicking any one of them should cause Web of Science to update the result list.)

• << Previous: Welcome
• Next: Topic Scope >>
• Last Updated: Jan 10, 2024 3:48 PM
• URL: https://shawneesu.libguides.com/literature_review

University Libraries      University of Nevada, Reno

• Skill Guides
• Subject Guides

Literature Reviews

• Searching for Literature
• Organizing Literature and Taking Notes
• Writing and Editing the Paper
• Help and Resources

Book an Appointment

What Is a Literature Review?

A literature review surveys and synthesizes the scholarly research literature related to a particular topic. Literature reviews both explain research findings and analyze the quality of the research in order to arrive at new insights.

Literature reviews may describe not only the key research related to a topic of inquiry but also seminal sources, influential scholars, key theories or hypotheses, common methodologies used, typical questions asked, or common patterns of inquiry.

There are different types of literature reviews.  A narrative literature review summarizes and synthesizes the findings of numerous research articles, but the purpose and scope of narrative literature reviews vary widely. The term "literature review" is most commonly used to refer to narrative literature reviews, and these are the types of works that are described in this guide. 

Some types of literature reviews that use prescribed methods for identifying and evaluating evidence-based literature related to specific questions are known as systematic reviews or meta-analyses . These types of studies follow a strict set of steps so as to make the review more reproducible and to minimize bias as much as possible. Systematic reviews or meta-analyses are typically conducted by at least two scholars working in collaboration as prescribed by certain guidelines, but narrative literature reviews may be conducted by authors working alone.

Purpose of a Literature Review

Literature reviews serve an important function in developing the scholarly record. Because of the vast amount of scholarly literature that exists, it can be difficult for readers to keep up with the latest developments related to a topic, or to discern which ideas, themes, authors, or methods are worthy of more attention. Literature reviews help readers to understand and make sense of a large body of scholarship.

Literature reviews also play an important function in assessing the quality of the evidence base in relation to a particular topic. Literature reviews contain assessments of the evidence in support of particular interventions, policies, programs, or treatments.

The literature that is reviewed may include a variety of types of research, including empirical research, theoretical works, and reports of practical application. The scholarly works that are considered for inclusion in a literature review may appear in a variety of publication types, including scholarly journals, books, conference proceedings, reports, and others. 

Steps in the Process

Follow these steps to conduct your literature review:

• Select a topic and prepare for searching.  Formulate a research question and establish inclusion and exclusion criteria for your search.
• Search for and organize the research. Use tools like the library website, library-subscription databases, Google Scholar, and others to locate research on your topic.
• Organize your research, read and evaluate it, and take notes. Use organizational and note-taking strategies to read sources and prepare for writing. 
• Write and edit the paper. Synthesize information from sources to arrive at new insights.

Literature Reviews: An Overview for Graduate Students

View the video below for an overview of the process of writing literature review papers.

Video:  Literature Reviews: An Overview for Graduate Students  by  libncsu

• Next: Searching for Literature >>

• louisville.edu
• PeopleSoft HR
• PeopleSoft Campus Solutions
• PeopleSoft Financials
• Business Ops
• Cardinal Careers

• Undergraduate
• International
• Online Learning

University of Louisville Writing Center

• University Writing Center FAQs
• Virtual Writing Center FAQs
• HSC Writing Center FAQs
• Writing FAQs
• Handouts and Videos
• Graduate Student Writing
• Spring Dissertation Writing Retreat
• Graduate Student Writing Workshops
• Graduate Student Writing Group
• Writing Groups
• Accessibility and Accommodations
• The University Writing Center and Your Students
• Request a Presentation about the University Writing Center
• Resources for Teaching Writing
• The Writing Center and Your Writing
• Faculty and Graduate Student Writing Group
• University Writing Center Mission Statement
• Meet Our Staff
• Statement on Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity
• Research at the University Writing Center
• How I Write Blog Posts
• Our Community Writing Values and Approaches
• Community Writing Internships and Volunteering
• Family Scholar House
• Western Branch Library
• How can I make myself a stronger writer?
• What makes college writing different than the writing I’ve done up to this point?
• How are the papers I'm asked to write in my major different from those in English 101, 102, and 105 courses?
• What can I do if I don’t completely understand the writing assignment?
• I want to get started writing early, but how do I begin?
• How do I get started writing a personal statement?
• I have a lot to say, but how can I organize my thoughts?
• How can I learn how to write in a new genre (for example, personal statement, resume, or literature review)?
• How do I expand a rough draft to make it meet the assignment’s length requirement?
• How can I find good sources for my research paper?
• What are some strategies for working sources into my research paper?
• What is the difference between quotation, paraphrase, and summary?
• How can I revise my draft if it doesn’t seem to “flow”?
• What does my teacher mean by “substantial revision?”
• How do I write an essay that makes an “argument”?
• How can I avoid plagiarizing?
• What are some strategies for improving my grammar and punctuation?
• How can I format my document properly in Word, PowerPoint or Excel?
• How should I approach writing a literature review at the graduate level?
• / Resources for Students
• / Writing FAQs
• / How should I approach writing a literature review at the graduate level?

What is the purpose of a Literature Review? For a graduate student the purpose of academic writing changes from what it was as an undergraduate. Where undergraduates often write to demonstrate a mastery of existing knowledge, graduate students are considered scholars and move toward creating new knowledge. Writing in graduate school, then, focuses on communicating that new knowledge to others in their field. In order to communicate this knowledge to other scholars, however, it also necessary to explain how that knowledge engages ongoing scholarly conversations in the field.

A literature review is a common genre for many types of writing you’ll have to do as a graduate student and scholar. Not only do dissertations contain literature reviews, but most articles and grant proposals have some form of literature review included in them. The reason the literature review is so prevalent in scholarly writing is that it functions as an argument about how your project fits in the ongoing scholarly conversation in your field and justifies your project.

A successful literature review does more than list the research that has preceded your work. A literature review is not simply a summary of research. Your literature review must not only demonstrate that you understand important conversations and debates surrounding your project and your position in regard to the conversations, but it must also create an argument as to why your work is relevant to your field of study. In order to create such an argument you must evaluate the relevant research, describing its strengths and weaknesses in relation to your project. You must then explain how your project will build on the work of other researchers, and fill the scholarly gaps left by other researchers. What is typically included in a Literature Review and how do I start?

To show how your project joins an existing scholarly conversation you need to provide readers with the necessary background to understand your research project and persuade them that your intervention in the scholarly conversation is necessary. The first step is to evaluate and analyze the scholarship that is key to understanding your work. The scholarship you evaluate may include previous research on similar topics, theoretical concepts and perspectives, or methodological approaches. Evaluating existing research means more than just summarizing the scholar’s main point. You will also want to assess the strengths and limits of the writer’s project and approach. Questions to consider as you read include: What problems or issues is the writer exploring? What position does the writer take? How is the writer intervening in an ongoing conversation? Where does the writer leave the issue?

Once you have evaluated the research of others, you need to consider how to integrate ideas from other scholars with your ideas and research project. You will also need to show your readers which research is relevant to understanding your project and explain how you position your work in relationship to what has come before your project. In order to do this, it may be helpful to think about the nature of your research project. Not all research has the same purpose. For example, your research project may focus on extending existing research by applying it in a new context. Or you may be questioning the findings of existing research, or you may be pulling together two or more previously unconnected threads of research. Or your project may be bringing a new theoretical lens or interpretation to existing questions. The focus of your research project will determine the kind of material you need to include in your literature review. What are some approaches for organizing a Literature Review? In the first part of a literature review you typically establish several things. You should define or identify your project and briefly point out overall trends in what has been published about the topic – conflicts, gaps in research, foundational research or theory, etc. You should also establish your position – or argument - for the project and the organization of the review.

In the body of the literature review, consider organizing the research and theory according a particular approach. For example, you could discuss the research chronologically. Or you could organize the research thematically, around key ideas or terms or theoretical approaches. Your literature review may include definitions of key terms and the sources from which they are drawn, descriptions of relevant debates in the field, or a description of the most current thinking on your topic.

You will also want to provide clear transitions and strong organizing sentences at the start of sections or paragraphs. You may find it helpful to divide the body of the review up into individual sections with individual subheadings. As you summarize and evaluate studies or articles keep in mind that each article should not necessarily get the same amount of attention. Some scholarship will be more central to your project and will therefore have to be discussed at more length. There also may be some scholarship that you choose not to include, so you might need to explain those decisions. At every turn, you want to keep in mind how you are making the case for how your research will advance the ongoing scholarly conversation. What can the Writing Center do to help? It can sometimes be difficult, after reading pages and pages of research in your field, to step back from the work and decide how best to approach your literature review. Even before you begin to write you may find a consultation in the Writing Center will help you plan out your literature review. Consultants at the Writing Center are experienced in working with scholars to help them reflect on and organize their work in a literature review so it creates the argument for your project. Make an appointment to work with us on your focus and organization even before you begin to write. We are also able to help you by reading and responding to your drafts or to help with issues of documentation. We can help you understand the genre conventions of the literature review, work through revisions, and help you learn how to edit your own work.  We recommend that you come in early to give yourself enough time to work through any problems that may come up as you write.

Five Ideas on Working with the Writing Center Sep 04, 2024

Conceptualizing Trauma-Informed Consulting in the University Writing Center Apr 17, 2024

Creating Art: A Painter’s Journey Into the World of Writing Mar 25, 2024

Getting Comfortable with Directive Practices in the Writing Center Mar 08, 2024

International Mother Language Day 2024 Mar 04, 2024

University and High School Writing Centers Feb 26, 2024

UofL Writing Center Blog - More…

University Writing Center

Ekstrom Library 132

Kornhauser Library 218

University of Louisville

Louisville, Kentucky 40292

Ekstrom Library

M 9 am - 5 pm

T, W, Th 9 am - 7 pm

F 9 am - 4 pm

Closed on student breaks and holidays  

(502) 852-2173

[email protected]

Social Media

Dissertation Research—Planning, Researching, Publishing

• Getting Started
• Find Dissertations
• Dissertation Process
• Library Database Searching
• Staying Current
• Qualitative
• Quantitive Research
• Mixed Methods Research
• Dissertation & Fellowship Funding

Video: Literature Reviews: an Overview for Graduate Students

• What is a literature review?
• What purpose does it serve in research?
• What should you expect when writing one?

Watch this short video to find answers to these questions!

(Source:  NCSU Libraries)

Helpful Books at GW Library

Comic to Help You Keep Your Sense of Humor...

• << Previous: Dissertation Process
• Next: Library Database Searching >>
• Last Updated: Jun 5, 2024 2:48 PM
• URL: https://libguides.gwu.edu/dissertation

• DeSales University
• Research Guides
• Graduate Student Resources
• Literature Reviews

Graduate Student Resources: Literature Reviews

• Meet your Librarians!
• Use the Library from Home
• Academic Research
• Academic Writing Basics
• Writing by Department
• Plagiarism This link opens in a new window
• Resources for ELL
• Info Lit Bits

Literature Reviews: An Overview for Graduate Students (NC State University)

Online Resources

• Writing a Literature Review (Ashford University) This Ashford University guide provides a step-by-step approach to writing a literature review as well as a video tutorial explaining the process.
• An Introduction to Literature Reviews (UVM Graduate Writing Center) This handout from the University of Vermont provides a detailed explanation of a literature review. It discusses how to assess a source and fill a gap in your review.
• The Literature Review: A Few Tips on Conducting It (University of Toronto) This guide from the University of Toronto provides an explanation of literature reviews and a list of questions to ask yourself about your argument and the sources you're reviewing.
• Literature Reviews Handout This worksheet from the Purdue OWL walks the writer through organizing their literature review and making sure they demonstrate the gaps in current research.

Print and eBooks

The Literature Review

How to Read a Paper

Health Sciences Literature Review Made Easy

Doing a Literature Review in Health and Social Care

Today's Hours

Helpful links.

• Meet with a Librarian
• Library Staff Directory
• Ask a Librarian
• Request an Article

   [email protected]

        610-282-1100 x1266

• << Previous: Graduate Writing
• Next: Writing by Department >>
• Last Updated: Aug 22, 2024 1:42 PM
• URL: https://desales.libguides.com/grad

The Graduate Writing Guy :: Writing Tips for Grad School

Literature reviews

Writing literature reviews (or “reviews of literature” if you’re “not into the whole brevity thing ”) is one of the more challenging academic tasks you’ll have to face as a grad student. If you’re writing a thesis or dissertation, for example, the lit review chapter (usually chapter 2) might be the hardest chapter to write, perhaps rivaled only by the “discussion” chapter. And even then, part of what makes the discussion chapter difficult is that it has to integrate your own findings (or data) with the main conclusions from your lit review (I should acknowledge that my claims here apply mainly to the sciences and social sciences, since humanities papers don’t always have such clearly-defined sections).

One problem that makes lit reviews difficult to write is simply students’ lack of preparation. In my experience, many professors teaching at the undergrad level assume that, if you go to grad school, you’ll be taught how to write lit reviews there. At the same time, many professors at the grad level assume that you were already taught how to write lit reviews at the undergrad level. Obviously, this gap creates confusion, especially for students.  

Another problem is that experts (like professors) often underestimate how difficult a task will be for a beginner (see, for example, this study , this study , and this study ). So, even if your professors know that writing literature reviews is a new challenge for you, they might not be aware of just how difficult the process will be (or how much scaffolding you might need).

All of this is to say: if you’re having trouble with writing a literature review for a thesis, dissertation, seminar paper, or journal article, there’s nothing wrong with you. Writing literature reviews is difficult. Having trouble doesn’t mean that you’re stupid or incapable. You just need a little guidance. And that’s why you’re visiting this page.

This page offers some of the best advice, suggestions, and materials I have to offer regarding lit reviews.

Lit Reviews: A Brief Overview

What exactly is a lit review? As Dr. Inger Mewburn  states on her  Thesis Whisperer  site , a good lit review is:

And here’s another helpful definition from the Penn State Graduate Writing Center :

Now, to write a good lit review, or any other piece of academic writing, we need to think about the reader. On that topic, I always like to quote Dr. Jim Pryor :

Another way the reader is “mean” is that s/he will not believe anything you say simply because you assert it. Thus, you have to meticulously back up all your claims with evidence. In academic writing, there are only 3 sources of evidence that I’m aware of:

(1) your own personal observations or opinions, which don’t count for much, unless they are backed up by either…

(2) your own original data (or findings) that you collected for your study (you summarize these findings in your “results” section of such a study, not the lit review), or…

(3) the data/findings of others—that is, the research literature. This last one, (3), is the literature that you’re reviewing in your literature review (if that makes sense).  

How exactly do you “review” this literature? What does “reviewing” entail? Each project or discipline might be slightly different. But generally speaking, in your lit review you want to summarize what’s already known about your topic, including any background information the reader needs to make sense of your study. Along the way, you want to point out any gaps or limitations that point to the need for further research—which is exactly why you’re conducting another study in the first place. After all, if we already knew everything about the topic, there’d be little point in conducting another study, right? But we don’t know everything about your topic. So, you point out what we don’t know—the gaps or areas of ignorance—and state that further research is needed to fill in those gaps.

The rest of this page offers helpful resources for writing literature reviews. But I’d also like to draw your attention to this helpful handout from the Penn State Graduate Writing Center, which offers a nice overview of lit reviews. In addition, my page called So You’re Writing a Thesis (or Dissertation) has a section called “The Parts of a Thesis” that contextualizes the role the lit review plays in a larger study.

Video: Lit Reviews “Crash Course” (16 min)

This video is a brief overview for people in a hurry. It goes over the basic idea of what a literature review is and gives an “orientation” to the most useful resources posted on this page. You can view the video by clicking here (opens in a new window). Note: The “ice cream” lit review document is supposed to be visible onscreen starting around 6:33 in the video, but for some reason it doesn’t appear. So I recommend downloading that document in the “Handouts” section below and following along.

Also, David Taylor, “your online writing professor,” has a nice video called “How to Write a Literature Review in 30 Minutes or Less,” which you can watch below:

However, make sure to pay close attention to what he says about re-ordering paragraphs into a logical list–what I like to call “telling a story” (the “story” he tells is about defining a problem, showing that it’s widespread, presenting solutions, etc.). And make sure to follow his advice about adding topic sentences and transition sentences. I add these cautions because, if you don’t pay attention, some of his advice could be misunderstood as suggesting that you can just paste in your annotated bibliography and add in a few transitions, and then, voila! You have a literature review. But that is not what he is saying, and doing that will not get you a very good grade in a graduate class.

Other Helpful Videos

Indiana University of Pennsylvania has some excellent introductory videos, most of them presented by Dr. Gary Dean, on the academic research process. The full YouTube playlist is available here . The video on literature reviews , presented by Dr. Jeff Ritchey, is available here .

Video: My 2024 Workshop on Lit Reviews (71 min)

You can view or download a recording of my workshop on literature reviews (from March 13, 2024) here or by clicking on the image below:

Note 1: The browser plays a 1-hour preview. For videos longer than 1 hour, download the file and watch it from your computer ( Steps : 1. Click on the video to open the Dropbox video page. 2. Use the “download” button, usually located on the top left of the page).

Video: My 2021 Workshop on Lit Reviews (78 min)

You can view or download a recording of my workshop on literature reviews (from March 11, 2021) here or by clicking on the image below:

Note 2: The video covers a whole range of topics, including what lit reviews are, how to find literature, how to read the literature, and so on. The part that discusses actually writing & structuring the lit review starts at approximately 52 minutes (52:48, to be exact).

Below are my PowerPoint slides from the workshop:

1 . The “Ice Cream Lit Review” is a slightly silly handout I put together to acquaint students with some basic ideas about structuring lit reviews. Note that this review is organized around a debate in the field.

2. The “Zombie” lit review is another silly handout. This review is based around themes (or subtopics) that emerge from the literature (so it’s a useful model for lit reviews organized around subtopics).

3. Also, at my workshops I’ve often shared the following handout from the Azusa Pacific University Writing Center which includes a sample mini lit review:

While this mini lit review is much shorter than almost any lit review you’re likely to write in grad school, students often find it helpful to see, in highly abbreviated form, what a lit review is supposed to accomplish.

4. Useful links and transition words . This one is relevant to academic writing in general, but students who are working on lit reviews often ask me about transition words, so it’s a good handout to include here:

Sample Lit Reviews

There is no single, universal “right way” to write a literature review. What counts as a good lit review depends a lot on your discipline, your professor/advisor, or what specific journal you’re submitting to. So, the best way to familiarize yourself with what kind of lit review you’re expected to write is to look at examples from your field, your campus, or your intended journal.

One helpful approach is to browse theses or dissertations written by recently-graduated students in your discipline. If you’re a CSULB grad student, you can do so by logging onto your single sign-on . Click on the “University Library” button and, after the Library page loads, select the “Services” drop-down menu at the top of the page and scroll down to “Thesis and Dissertation.” Click on “Thesis and Dissertation.” When the Thesis Office page loads, click on the gray “Find a Thesis or Dissertation” on the bottom left side of the page (or try this direct link ).

The Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL ) has a nice sample literature review with comments:

Note, however, that this is a somewhat short and basic literature review (possibly from an undergraduate paper). So, while it’s a good introductory model, the lit reviews you’ll have to write in grad school will likely be longer and more complex.

However, Purdue OWL also has some great general advice on writing literature reviews. I highly recommend the OWL’s tutorials.

Dr. Kimberly Rombach has posted an excellent “Example of a Lit Review” online . Below is a PDF version that includes some commentary by me on the first 10 pages.

The University of LaVerne has some great sample lit reviews (and tutorials) posted on the Literature Review Basics page maintained by librarian Liberty McCoy. What’s great about the samples here is that they’re all peer-reviewed articles and organized by discipline.

The APA also has a nice sample lit review that you can download here ( Note: This is one of those direct download links that automatically downloads a Word doc).

When reading samples, you can maximize your learning by “ reading like a writer ,” as discussed by Mike Bunn. Pay attention to choices made by the authors of the samples, and think about what these choices accomplish and whether or not your paper could benefit from similar choices. Such choices can include:

–What kind (or how many) headers to include

–Uses of transitions and signal words to convey arguments clearly to readers

–How many authors are cited per section

–How many sources to include overall

–How much detail (and what kinds of detail) are discussed for each source mentioned

–How sources are “integrated” or “synthesized” together; how much the sources “talk to each other” (see further comments in “Synthesizing and Integrating Sources” below).

Some Must-Read Posts from “The Thesis Whisperer”

Dr. Inger Mewburn’s fabulous Thesis Whisperer site is brimming with useful materials for grad students. Below are some of her essential posts that discuss literature reviews:

5 ways to fail your PhD (note #4: “write a bad literature review”)

5 ways to tame the literature dragon

How to become a literature searching ninja (see “Literature Search Strategies” below for more information on conducting literature searches)

Developing a Research Question

A lot of the students I work with at CSULB start working on a preliminary literature review for their thesis or dissertation even before they’ve firmly narrowed down an exact research question. That is, they start the thesis-writing process by putting together a rough draft of the literature review based on a topic (rather than a question), or on a somewhat vague question (that they’ll “polish” later). This is perfectly fine. But the final draft of your literature review will likely have been re-written so that it addresses the scholarly conversation on a specific question or set of closely-related questions. In any case, if you’re having trouble with research questions, the following resources can help:

Eastern Michigan University: Developing a Good Research Question

George Mason University: How to Write a Research Question

The Thesis Whisperer: Mind the Gap and How to Choose a Thesis Topic that Actually Matters and The PhD Piñata: Groping for Research Questions

Literature Search Strategies

If you’re mostly having trouble finding sources, here are some good sites with helpful information:

CSULB: OneSearch at CSULB: Search Tips

CSULB: Research Tools

Mississippi College: Research 101: Building better searches…Boolean & more

Elmira College: How to Do Research: A Step-By-Step Guide: 2a. Search Strategies

Southern New Hampshire University: Finding Scholarly Sources

“Google-Fu” (useful for Google Scholar searches): The Beginners Guide to Google-Fu? and Improving Your Google-Fu: How To Find Anything You Want

Literature Reading Strategies

Below are some helpful resources on reading through the literature to be discussed (or not) in your review.

Beth Azar | APA: Sink or skim? Tackle that endless pile of books and journal articles with the help of these reading tips.

Miriam E. Sweeney: How to Read for Grad School I’ve also made Dr. Sweeney’s blogpost into a handout that I often share at live workshops:

Wendy Belcher: Solution to Writing Obstacle No. 26: “I have to read just one more book before I can write.”

Summarizing and Paraphrasing Sources

In addition to the problem of structuring the whole lit review, some students struggle with summarizing articles (which is a necessary part of most lit reviews). How does one distill a 20-page journal article, for instance, into a 1-2 paragraph summary?

In the humanities (e.g. literature, philosophy), you might simply summarize the main points of an author’s argument. For example, you might realize that the argument proceeds in major “steps” or “moves,” so you might summarize each major step/move in a sentence or two. For example:

In his paper on the ethics of bank robbing, R. Hood (1954) argues that it is ethically permissible to rob banks as long as the funds are re-distributed to the poor. He defends this claim on utilitarian grounds, noting that the total happiness of the society will increase by an amount far greater than the relatively minor decrease in happiness experienced by the banks’ shareholders. He considers, then refutes, objections to this position, including objections based on non-utilitarian approaches to ethics (egoism, Kantian deontology).

For the physical and social sciences (or any “ empirical ” area of study), on the other hand, research articles almost always include a standard list of specific elements (listed below), whether or not each of these elements has its own heading or subheading in the article. Most, if not all, of these elements should be paraphrased in your summary.

These elements are:

–Purpose: What was the purpose of the study? What were the researchers trying to accomplish or figure out? For example : “This study aimed to assess the prevalence of depression and its associated factors among medical students.”

–Research questions: What exact/specific question(s) did the researchers try to answer? For example: “What is the prevalence of depression among a random sample of medical students in Karnataka, India? In this sample, what associations exist between depression and the following social factors: alcohol use, drug addiction, family problems, family history of depression, and staying away from home?”

–Methods: What type of study was it ( qualitative, quantitative, or mixed methods )? What did they do exactly? ( specific tools or instruments used ) Who were the participants/what was the sample? How were they selected? What were their demographics ? (obviously, these questions will be different depending on whether the study was conducted on people, animals, or inanimate objects)? For example : “This study used quantitative methods. A stratified random sample of 400 students (54.3% males and 45.7% females) was assessed using the Beck Depression Inventory. Univariate analysis was conducted to test for associations between depression and the selected variables (social factors).”

–Findings/results: What did the researchers find out? Did they confirm or disconfirm (refute) any existing studies/findings? For example: “The overall prevalence of depression was found to be 71.25%. Among those with depression, a majority (80%) had mild and moderate depression. The study showed that 46.3% (132) of the depressed were females and 53.7% (153) were males. The prevalence of depression was found to be significantly greater among those with family problems and family history of depression.”

–Limitations & delimitations: To crudely oversimplify, limitations are potential weaknesses or blind spots of your study that are outside of your control (based on the fundamental limits of your particular method). For example : “One limitation of this study was that the Back Depression Inventory relies on self-reporting of symptoms, and self-report depends on the assumption that participants accurately report their thoughts and feelings.” Delimitations are potential weaknesses or blind spots that are inside your control. For example: “Because the researchers studied participants from only one region of India, the results may not be universalizable to other contexts.” For more on limitations and delimitations, see this helpful article from Dissertation Recipes .

–Significance: Why should we care about the findings? How are they important to the field? How does this study contribute to your argument? How will the findings of this study inform your research? For example : “The study showed that depression is highly prevalent among medical students in the area studied. The findings point to the importance of broad screening and psychiatric counseling of this vulnerable population.”

The examples above are based on this study:

Kumar, G. S., Animesh, J., & Hegde, S. (2012). Prevalence of depression and its associated factors using Beck Depression Inventory among students of a medical college in Karnataka. Indian Journal of Psychiatry , 54 (3), 223–226. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3512357/

A few notes of caution:

–By using this study as an example, I am not necessarily attesting to the quality of the research or the writing (I’m not a medical professional – who am I to judge?). I am simply using it because it was easy to locate, and it clearly and directly lists most of the elements discussed above.

–To save time, I indiscriminately plagiarized some of the exact wording used in the published  study. DO NOT DO THIS in your class papers. It is an unethical action for which your professors will not grade you kindly!

–The order of items in your summary does not have to follow the order that I’ve used above.

–As stated elsewhere on this page, not all summaries in a lit review will include all of the elements I’ve listed above. These are just given as examples. Remember that, in your actual lit review, you will only include detailed summaries of a small number of articles. You will not summarize most of the literature in great detail—most of the time you’ll be simply reporting major findings, along with synthesizing and integrating your sources.  

For more information on proper paraphrases and avoiding plagiarism , see my page on Avoiding Plagiarism . See also the following made-up example to give you some idea of what a completed summary might look like:

Bokanovsky and Seldin (2017) studied the psycho-social challenges facing gender and sexual minority (GSM) youth in urban schools. Their purpose was to look for correlations between depression and experiences of bullying among the target population. The sample included 100 young people from inner city schools in the Southwestern US who self-identified as belonging to a gender or sexual minority. The researchers used a mixed methods approach, administering the Beck Depression inventory (a quantitative tool) and a series of open-ended interview questions (qualitative) to all participants. They found that there was a strong correlation between bullying and experiences of depression, and that this correlation was especially pronounced among transgender participants. This study underscores the high risk of both bullying and depression among GSM youth, and points to the need for further study of this topic.

Further resources : Summarizing articles for a lit review is very similar to writing a “precis” or an abstract (although these terms have specific meanings depending on the discipline and/or the professor who’s teaching you). So, the following resources might be helpful:

Dr. Ross Matsueda (UW): Writing a useful precis for a research article

Swales & Feak on Abstracts (note—in this handout, “RP” stands for “research paper”):

The full Swales and Feak text, Academic Writing for Graduate Students , 3rd ed., can be purchased here . It’s an excellent reference, and I use it frequently in my work with graduate students.

Synthesizing and Integrating Sources

Professors often complain that students write their literature reviews as a long string of summaries: “First, Author A (2015) states X. He used Y methods and had Z many participants. He found that…

Second, Author B (2019) states that… She used X methods to…. She concluded that…”

Generally speaking, this is NOT what professors want you to do. Instead, they want you to “synthesize” (or “integrate”) the literature, meaning that you organize your literature review around key ideas (or themes), and incorporate the authors/sources into this discussion. In other words, your discussion is idea-driven (or topic-driven) rather than paper-driven.

For example, a “synthesized” literature review might include sentences like this one: “There are many schools of thought on topic X. The principal schools of thought are Y, Z, and T… One of the principal contemporary defenders of the Y position is Author A (2015), who argues that…”

This is just an example, of course. There are many different ways to structure a literature review, including arranging it chronologically (e.g. showing the historical evolution of ideas on a topic), arranging it by key positions or schools of thought in a debate (like the example given a few lines above, and like the “ice cream” lit review handout available on this page), arranging it “top-down” (e.g. a major “umbrella” topic which is divided into several subtopics), or arranging it according to some theoretical framework that you’re applying to understand the topic. Finally, many lit reviews are simply organized around “themes” that emerge from the literature. In other words, you read several articles (i.e., literature) focused on a particular topic. Five of these articles all mentioned some key idea, or subtopic, that plays an important role in the main topic. This key idea could be a “theme” that you’ll talk about in your lit review. In addition, 12 of the articles mentioned another key idea. This could be another theme. Your literature review will start with something like: “This literature review examines studies on topic X. Three key themes emerge from this examination: (1) Theme a, (2) Theme b,” and so on. See the “Zombie” lit review handout above for a model of a theme-based literature review.

Your topic, research questions, and purpose will ultimately determine what the right organizational approach is. But the right approach is pretty much NEVER going to be: “just list a series of papers, in whatever order, and summarize them one by one.” Instead, you should choose an organizational approach that best suits your topic (and any arguments or claims you make about it).

Another way to synthesize is to get papers to “talk to each other.” For example, “Johnson (2011) finds that Y is the case. His study involved a sample size of… ” (here, you’re briefly summarizing the main findings, methods, etc. of Johnson, 2011). Now, you’re going to make the Johnson paper “talk to” another paper: “In contrast, Tanizaki (2015) conducts a similar study, but has strikingly different findings from Johnson….” (now, you elaborate on Tanizaki’s study and explain the differences from Johnson’s). Finally, the synthesis: “Taken together, these studies demonstrate the need for further research on Y. For example, it is unclear whether…”

With these points in mind, here are some useful materials on “synthesizing” information in your lit review:

The “ice cream” and “Zombie” lit review handouts (these can be downloaded above, in the section called “My Workshop on Lit Reviews”).

Harvard’s Graduate School of Education: The Literature Review: A Research Journey. The video is no longer available for non-Harvard students (damn you, paywall!). But the handouts, which ARE available, are still very helpful: 1. Question , 2. Search , 3. Manage , 4. Synthesize (our main interest in this section), 5. Write .

Purdue OWL: Synthesizing sources . Includes some helpful textual examples to show you what synthesis looks like in practice.

Frederiksen and Phelps (2020). Literature Reviews for Education and Nursing Graduate Students. An Open Access Textbook (available for free here ) with lots of helpful info. The chapter on synthesis can be directly accessed here .

Many students find it helpful to make a “synthesis matrix” to record the main ideas of the articles that they’ve read. You can find helpful examples here and here , or download this sample handed out by some professors in our CSULB Education department:

Critiquing Sources

Most literature reviews are expected to include some critiques of the literature that’s being reviewed. Critiques can be made of several papers or articles at once (i.e., you can critique a body of work on a topic) or of single papers (i.e., you can “zoom in” on a particular article, usually an especially important or groundbreaking article, and summarize it, as described above, and then critique it).

Here’s an example of an author critiquing several articles at once (in this case, the specific type of critique is pointing out “gaps” in the literature):

These examples are from pp. 173-174 of Galvan, J. L. & Galvan, M. C. (2017). Writing literature reviews: A guide for students of the social and behavioral sciences (7th ed.). Routledge.

Here’s another example of critiquing more than one article in the same passage (this example is form p. 217 of the same Galvan and Galvan text cited above; here the critique is about sample size):

Here’s an example of “zooming in” on a study (technically, two studies, but the structure would be the same for one study) and then providing a specific critique (this example is from p. 205 of Galvan):

When critiquing research, it can be helpful to ask questions such as the following (which are adapted from a page by Dr. Ali Rezaei ):

• Is the significance of the problem discussed?
• If necessary, are variables directly or operationally defined?
• Is instrument validity discussed and coefficients given if appropriate?
• Is reliability discussed in terms of type and size of reliability coefficients?
• If an instrument was developed specifically for the study, are the procedures involved in its development and validation described?
• Is the design appropriate for answering the questions or testing the hypotheses of the study?
• Are the procedures described in sufficient detail to permit them to be replicated by another researcher?
• If a pilot study was conducted, are its execution and results described as well as its impact on the subsequent study?
• Are the control procedures described?
• Did the researcher discuss or account for any potentially confounding variables that he or she was unable to control for?

The above are just some examples and don’t cover all the possibilities.

Here’s another way to think about critique: recall what I said up near the beginning of this page, that writing a literature review involves giving the reader necessary background and pointing out any gaps in our knowledge that justify why you’re bothering to do another study. With this point in mind, you can include critiques that help you make this point about gaps.

For example, you can start by summarizing a particular “focus” study that you’re zooming in on: “Johnson and Tanizaki (2023) studied a sample of… They found that… This study helps explain why… ”

Then, you can critique the study by pointing out the its limitations or why it still leaves room for further research: “However, this study involved participants from the East Coast only, meaning that it is unclear whether the results from this study can be generalized to West Coast participants. Thus, further study is needed…” OR “While its results are highly informative, the sample size of the study was relatively small at n=… Thus, further research is needed to establish….” These are just a couple of examples of how you can incorporate the study’s limitations into your critique, which in turn can be used to point out the need for more research work (which indirectly motivates why you are doing your own study).

The following handout collects some excerpts from Galvan and Galvan (2017) that offer useful tips on writing critiques of research literature:

Further Reading

Here are some of the best books available on writing literature reviews:

Wendy Belcher: Writing your journal article in 12 weeks . (University of Chicago Press, 2nd ed., 2019).

John Swales & Christine Feak: Telling a research story: Writing a literature review . (University of Michigan Press, 2009).

Jose Galvan & Melisa Galvan. Writing literature reviews. (Routledge, 7th ed., 2017).

Share this:

• Copy shortlink
• Report this content
• Manage subscriptions

Literature Reviews

• Getting started

What is a literature review?

Why conduct a literature review, stages of a literature review, lit reviews: an overview (video), check out these books.

• Types of reviews
• 1. Define your research question
• 2. Plan your search
• 3. Search the literature
• 4. Organize your results
• 5. Synthesize your findings
• 6. Write the review
• Artificial intelligence (AI) tools
• Thompson Writing Studio This link opens in a new window
• Need to write a systematic review? This link opens in a new window

Guide Owner

Contact a Librarian

Ask a Librarian

Definition: A literature review is a systematic examination and synthesis of existing scholarly research on a specific topic or subject.

Purpose: It serves to provide a comprehensive overview of the current state of knowledge within a particular field.

Analysis: Involves critically evaluating and summarizing key findings, methodologies, and debates found in academic literature.

Identifying Gaps: Aims to pinpoint areas where there is a lack of research or unresolved questions, highlighting opportunities for further investigation.

Contextualization: Enables researchers to understand how their work fits into the broader academic conversation and contributes to the existing body of knowledge.

tl;dr  A literature review critically examines and synthesizes existing scholarly research and publications on a specific topic to provide a comprehensive understanding of the current state of knowledge in the field.

What is a literature review NOT?

❌ An annotated bibliography

❌ Original research

❌ A summary

❌ Something to be conducted at the end of your research

❌ An opinion piece

❌ 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.

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!

So, you have to write a literature review: A guided workbook for engineers

Telling a research story: Writing a literature review

The literature review: Six steps to success

Systematic approaches to a successful literature review

Request from Duke Medical Center Library

Doing a systematic review: A student's guide

• Next: Types of reviews >>
• Last Updated: Sep 30, 2024 12:26 PM
• URL: https://guides.library.duke.edu/litreviews

Services for...

• Faculty & Instructors
• Graduate Students
• Undergraduate Students
• International Students
• Patrons with Disabilities

• Harmful Language Statement
• Re-use & Attribution / Privacy
• Support the Libraries

• Harvard Library
• Research Guides
• Faculty of Arts & Sciences Libraries

Chemistry Resources for Graduate Students

Literature review.

• Getting Started
• Library Databases
• Find Dissertations and Theses
• Managing Citations
• Managing Your Academic Identity  
• Research Data Management
• Helpful Tools
• Library seminars

Reviewing the Literature: Why do it?

• Personal: To familiarize yourself with a new area of research, to get an overview of a topic, so you don't want to miss something important, etc.
• Required writing for a journal article, thesis or dissertation, grant application, etc.

Literature reviews vary; there are many ways to write a literature review based on discipline, material type, and other factors.

Background:

• Literature Reviews - UNC Writing Center
• Literature Reviews: An Overview for Graduate Students  - What is a literature review? What purpose does it serve in research? What should you expect when writing one? - NCSU Video

Where to get help (there are lots of websites, blogs , articles,  and books on this topic) :

• The Center for writing and Communicating Ideas (CWCI)
• (these are non-STEM examples: dissertation guidance , journal guidelines )
• How to prepare a scientific doctoral dissertation based on research articles (2012)
• Writing a graduate thesis or dissertation (2016)
• The good paper : a handbook for writing papers in higher education (2015)
• Proposals that work : a guide for planning dissertations and grant proposals (2014)
• Theses and dissertations : a guide to planning, research, and writing (2008)
• Talk to your professors, advisors, mentors, peers, etc. for advice

READ related material and pay attention to how others write their literature reviews:

• Dissertations
• Journal articles
• Grant proposals
• << Previous: Find Dissertations and Theses
• Next: Managing Citations >>
• Last Updated: Oct 17, 2024 4:37 PM
• URL: https://guides.library.harvard.edu/CCBGrad

Harvard University Digital Accessibility Policy

Literature Reviews for Education and Nursing Graduate Students

(15 reviews)

Linda Frederiksen, Washington State University Vancouver

Sue F. Phelps, Washington State University Vancouver

Copyright Year: 2017

Publisher: Rebus Community

Language: English

Formats Available

Conditions of use.

Learn more about reviews.

Reviewed by Rebecca Appleton, Professor of Nursing, Marshall University on 5/7/24

It is very through in covering the steps of a well written literature review read more

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

It is very through in covering the steps of a well written literature review

Content Accuracy rating: 5

I have not read the entire book, but what I did read was very good.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

It is up to date, but doing a Literature Review is covered in a step-wise manner, includes writing the LR>

Clarity rating: 5

Very clear step-by-step approach

Consistency rating: 5

It is very consistent!

Modularity rating: 5

Chapters are orderly and succinct

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

Strait forward order.

Interface rating: 5

I did not notice Interface issues.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

No grammatical errors were noticed.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

I did not notice any problems with cultural Insensitivity

I plan to use this in a Nursing Research class for Graduate Students, and I am trying a new approach to finding the best Research Evidence on a Nursing Topic. Can't wait to see if this help my graduate students understand research literature better.

Reviewed by Barbara Schneider, Professor, University of Texas at Arlington on 4/29/24

This textbook covers the range of topics important for a literature review, including formulating a research question, finding scholarly articles, evaluating sources, and synthesizing source content. The videos are great supplements to the text. read more

This textbook covers the range of topics important for a literature review, including formulating a research question, finding scholarly articles, evaluating sources, and synthesizing source content. The videos are great supplements to the text.

Overall, the content is accurate. Consider labeling Nursing as a health profession/discipline.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 4

Much of the content remains relevant. Updated examples would be helpful to today's graduate students.

The textbook is clearly written.

Consistency rating: 4

In general, the text is consistent. There could be more consistency in the formatting of the references.

The modularity is an asset.

There is a logical flow to the topics.

The links to outside materials are helpful.

No grammatical errors were evident.

The examples seemed inclusive.

Those who are new to writing a literature review would find this book useful.

Reviewed by Yolanda Griffiths, Professor of Occupational Therapy, Drake University on 12/15/21

The authors were thorough and very organized in stepping readers through the process of conducting and writing a literature review. Each area is appropriately indexed and examples are provided in a variety of ways. The synthesis section is... read more

The authors were thorough and very organized in stepping readers through the process of conducting and writing a literature review. Each area is appropriately indexed and examples are provided in a variety of ways. The synthesis section is especially useful as students often do not understand what this means. Perhaps some content on plagiarism would benefit this section as well. The flow of the material easily guides users logically through each topic.

The content is accurate and unbiased. The content is presented in an easy to understand way with videos, and examples.

The relevance of the content is classic and the text should be pertinent for many years. The links included in the text are very useful and should be easy for authors to check periodically. Using a digital media is more relevant to today's students than print textbooks. Each section addresses a reasonable chunk of information.

The book is user friendly, written in an easy to understand manner, and graphics or links add to the understanding of the content. Definitions are clearly written. Such as clarifying the types of literature reviews will be useful for students. Providing a test yourself section at the end of sections allows the reader to check if any content was confusing or not clear.

The text is consistently laid out in a logical manner which helps to unpack content which may be new or unfamiliar to the reader/student.

The amount of content allocated to each chapter is appropriate and will be easy to assign readings. The chapter headings are clear and the embedded videos, charts and test questions enlighten each subunit. The hyperlinking in the table of contents helps to navigate the chapters well.

The organization of the content is logical and easy to understand the process of completing a literature review. The book is laid out much like a road map where students can see the big picture as well as the supporting parts to the process. The references by chapter are very useful.

The graphics were clear, and the non-serif font aids in eye fatigue. One recommendation is to lower the brightness of the bold blue text in the table of contents to reduce eye fatigue. There was no problem to play the videos and the audio was clear. All links worked well.

There were no grammatical errors. There were a few typos such as 1.3.1.8 needs a space between "A specific", 2.3 in the phrase "Articles by the type of periodical in which an article it is published" perhaps remove the word "it", in the table on page 41. under Nursing , the word clinical is spelled "Cclinical", remove the capital C.

No evidence of cultural bias or insensitivity.

I am very excited to use this textbook in my doctoral level occupational therapy class. The inclusion of concise explanations of PICO and SPICE will be very useful. This will be a wonderful resource for graduate students and being mindful of costs for textbooks is compassionate.

Reviewed by Susan Bassett, Instructor, Nursing Graduate Program, Eastern New Mexico University on 11/9/21

Each chapter presented a different aspect of doing a literature review. This was organized and orderly. The index/table of contents was very detailed which allowed the reader to easily use this book as a reference while conducting a literature... read more

Each chapter presented a different aspect of doing a literature review. This was organized and orderly. The index/table of contents was very detailed which allowed the reader to easily use this book as a reference while conducting a literature review.

The content appeared to be entirely accurate. It did a good job of combining information for both education and nursing students. The authors addressed pertinent points of research study development as well as the specific methodology of approaching a research-focused literature review.

The text was up-to-date in methodology, which should not change frequently. The many links to websites were very helpful and yet were basic enough that they should be relevant for years. If they do need updating, the are clearly presented and should be easily updated. The breakdown to very small "chunks" of information per section will help in easily updating specific parts of information.

The book presented a rather complex topic in an extremely straight-forward, easy to read, clear manner. Each small "chunk" of information was identified per section numbering which correlated with movement through the content. The writing was professional and yet not overwhelmed with discipline-specific terminology. Where potentially new terminology was presented, it was immediately followed with definitions and examples.

The book was well-organized and moved along the structure set out early in the book. Content was gradually unfolded, as divided per chapter. There was a bit of repetition (probably about three examples) where the authors attempted to tie information together. Although this stood out to a reader, it seemed more useful in organizing than detrimental in repetition.

The book was subdivided into chapters and then into many small modules of discrete information. It could easily be assigned in part. It could also readily be used as a reference for students to go back and easily find processes or pieces of information they might need later.

I found the continual clear and succinct organization of information to be a defining highlight of this book. When presenting early steps of the research process and then linking these steps with how to conduct a literature review and subsequenty organize and write a literature review, this book is presenting numerous procews steps that must work in tandem. This book did that in a clear and easily readable fashion.

The one feature that did distract me was within the bullet points of 1.3.1. "Types of Reviews". There was a mix of complete and incomplete sentences that worked to convey information succinctly, but distracted me as a reader.

Grammatical Errors rating: 4

I did find several spelling and grammaticl errors (1.3.1.8, , 1.3.1.9, 2.1.1, 2.3, 2.3.1.1, , 2.3.1.4, 2.3 Table A., p. 41, p. 53, p. 54). Although small errors (a few letters or spacing) they should be corrected.

I did not find any mistakes in cultural appropriateness The content did repeatedly talk about bias reduction in the process of writing a literature review

I thought this book was very well-written and contained great information for my students. The links provided were very appropriate and helpful. The Table "Guide to searching for literature at various stages of the scholarly communication process” was particularly helpful. I will immediately begin using portions of the content in this book to support my research class. Additionally, I will recommend the entire book as a reference for the dedicated student (or one intending to go forward to a doctoral level of education in nursing). Thank you for collating all this information and helpful links into one clear, easily readable and understandable document.

Reviewed by Leah Nillas, Associate Professor, Illinois Wesleyan University on 9/6/21

This book addresses the basic steps in the process of writing a literature review research. Chapter 2 (What is a Literature Review?) needs to be retitled. I think Chapter 1 (Introduction) clearly defines and characterizes literature review as a... read more

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

This book addresses the basic steps in the process of writing a literature review research. Chapter 2 (What is a Literature Review?) needs to be retitled. I think Chapter 1 (Introduction) clearly defines and characterizes literature review as a research category. Chapter 2 focuses more on the creation of information, information cycle, and selecting appropriate sources. Chapter 7 (Synthesizing Sources) and Chapter 8 (Writing the Lit Review) can still be improved to incorporate specific strategies in synthesizing research literature and examples of writing styles through analysis of a variety of published examples. Writing a synthesis is a challenging skill for most novice researchers.

Information shared is accurate. I did not notice any content error.

Main content is up-to-date. A few citations maybe dated but they are necessary in illustrating different examples of literature reviews. It will be easy to include additional relevant examples of research work that are published recently.

I like how this text is written. Tone is reader friendly and narrative is accessible to novice researchers.

Clearly consistent throughout the chapters.

Clear and purposeful "chunking" of information per chapter.

Readers can easily follow the organization of topics and content.

No obvious interface issues. Appropriate use of multimedia tools.

No grammatical errors.

Text is culturally sensitive. Additional readings, references, or examples can easily be added to incorporate research conducted by diverse authors or literature reviews which focus on diversity and inclusion issues in education and nursing.

This is a good introductory literature review text even for undergraduate education students. Clear discussion of the nature of the research and the writing process. The use of videos and images is helpful in providing multimodal approach in explaining topics or processes. Writing style and tone make the text accessible to novice researchers.

Reviewed by Rebecca Scheckler, Assistant Professor, Radford University on 7/6/20

Two missing topics were inter-library loan and how to avoid plagiarism in writing up the literature review. This second is such an important topic that it deserves its own chapter. read more

Two missing topics were inter-library loan and how to avoid plagiarism in writing up the literature review. This second is such an important topic that it deserves its own chapter.

It is accurate. I found no inaccuracies.

This book is very relevant. Every advanced undergraduate or graduate students requires such a book

I found the book clear. The videos interspersed within the book added much to the clarity. There are lots of good diagrams that add to the clarity. They are not all original but their sources are all cited. The section on boolean searches, usage of asterisks and quotes in searches is very helpful and appropriate although often left out of discussion of searches.

The book is consistent in terminology and framework.

The chapters were cohesive.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 4

I like the links to within the text to the references and other matter. What is needed are back links to the text from the references. I also would have liked links from the exercises to the answers of the exercises.

Interface rating: 4

See navigation links mentioned above. The grey literature link is broken.

I saw no grammatical problems. There are many bulleted lists rather than text which is appropriate to this topic.

There could be more attention to cultural context in the frequent examples.

I wondered why nursing and education were combined. They are similar in nature but not identical. separation them out into two books might be appropriate.

Reviewed by Lisa Shooman, Associate Professor, Worcester State University on 6/29/20

Overall, this book provides a very comprehensive and thorough roadmap for creating a literature review. The videos assist the reader in crystallizing the information presented in the text. There is an effective index and glossary that provide... read more

Overall, this book provides a very comprehensive and thorough roadmap for creating a literature review. The videos assist the reader in crystallizing the information presented in the text. There is an effective index and glossary that provide helpful navigation to the reader.

The content is detailed, clearly explained, error-free, and unbiased. My students would greatly benefit from the lucid information presented in this text to guide them with developing a literature review. I would be eager to adopt this book for my students.

The content is timely and will not be quickly out-of-date. The quiz questions at the end of each chapter are relevant and will aid students with the consolidation of the material. The online format allows for updating, and the version history at the end of the text clearly indicated that the book was updated recently.

The text is clear and not ridden with any excess jargon /technical terminology. Pictures, graphics, and videos further elucidate the text. There are helpful questions that stimulate thought and lists that help to organize information.

The internal consistency in the text is excellent. However, Chapter 1.1 and Chapter 2 have the same title and it would benefit the reader to have different titles that would highlight the differences between these two sections. Chapter 1.1 is an overview and Chapter 2 dives into more depth.

The text is efficiently divided into smaller reading sections that are demarcated by numbers. The subsections in each chapter can be assigned at different points in the course. The text is organized logically and systematically that assists the reader with comprehension and provides a roadmap for creating an effective literature review.

The entire text is presented coherently and concisely. The organization of the text takes the reader through the process of creating an effective literature review. It can be used by multiple health professions, although the length of the text is relatively short it includes a considerable depth of the material. Other disciplines that would benefit from using this test in their courses may include occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speech and language pathology students.

The interface of the text is simple and easy to follow. The cover of the text would benefit from photos, color, and graphic design to appeal to the modern digital reader.

No grammatical or spelling errors are noted.

No cultural biases existed in the text in any way. There are no individuals highlighted in the book, and due to the technical nature of the subject matter, the text is inclusive to a variety of races, ethnicities, and backgrounds. No offensive statements are included in this book.

The authors should consider including other health professionals in the title and provide examples that can relate to other health professionals throughout the text. Other health professionals that can benefit from reading this text include occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speech and language pathology students. Literature reviews are relevant for many health professionals in their master's and doctorate programs and the text could serve a wider audience.

Reviewed by Ellen Rearick, Assistant Professor, Framingham State University on 6/1/20

This text covers all areas and the process of the integrative review appropriately. It is an engaging text for graduate students new to these assignments. read more

This text covers all areas and the process of the integrative review appropriately. It is an engaging text for graduate students new to these assignments.

This text is well done, very accurate

This text is relevant. The updates needed regarding APA format should be relatively easy to implement.

This text is clear and provides users with definitions and examples of the variety of reviews.

Very well written using consistent terminology throughout.

The text's reading sections are easily accessible and users will find them organized. Each chapter and its sections are presented in the sequence of the process of an integrative review.

Very clear and logical order.

The navigation of this text was problem-free.

No grammatical errors noted.

No issues with cultural insensitivity noted.

This was a well-organized text using videos to reinforce content that would benefit any education or nursing graduate student new to the integrative review process.

Reviewed by Ruth Stoltzfus, Professor of Nursing; Dir., Grad Programs in Nursing, Goshen College on 6/1/19

This text provides everything a graduate student needs to write a literature review in a concise manner. If you look at the digital pdf, there are many strategies to help the reader learn the process - videos, diagrams, and also text. read more

This text provides everything a graduate student needs to write a literature review in a concise manner. If you look at the digital pdf, there are many strategies to help the reader learn the process - videos, diagrams, and also text.

I found no evidence of bias and no errors.

This book has long-term relevance. The content will not quickly out-date.

I really liked the way the textbook is structured. The author is concise which makes the textbook easy to read.

I found no inconsistencies in terminology or other aspects related to the content.

I will adopt this text for a research course I use and will likely assign only specific chapters. I plan to recommend the textbook to another faculty who teaches a comprehensive research course with the idea of assigning only specific sections to read..

The textbook begins with an introduction to the subject matter. Subsequent chapters develop specific aspects related to lit reviews. The textbook provides a nice "how to" for each element of a lit review. Chapters are also organized in a smooth, easy to follow format.

I only looked at the digital pdf and print pdf versions. The print pdf indicates that there are videos to watch, but of course since it is a print pdf, there is no linkage. I think this would be obvious to a savvy reader - that a print pdf will be limited in what the reader can access.

I found no grammatical errors in my quick read.

I found no evidence of cultural bias or insensitivity.

This is the first open textbook that I have encountered. I was expecting it to be flat and boring! However, it was neither of those. There were color diagrams, color photos, and even videos embedded in the textbook.

I have adopted this book for the Research Lit Review course that I am teaching soon. I am impressed!

Reviewed by Melissa Wells, Assistant Professor, University of Mary Washington on 5/1/19

This book helps students in education and nursing complete a literature review, which may be the first time these students are tackling such a task. The chapters break down the process into defining the special genre of a literature review;... read more

This book helps students in education and nursing complete a literature review, which may be the first time these students are tackling such a task. The chapters break down the process into defining the special genre of a literature review; providing tips to get started; suggesting where students can find literature to review; explaining how to evaluate sources; detailing the process of documenting sources; giving advice for synthesizing sources; and finally, putting all of these pieces together into a final literature review. Most significantly, the text provides specific examples of ideas presented in the context of both nursing and education, which makes the content directly relatable to the student's course of study. The conclusion recaps the main points of each chapter in bullet form. The text is lacking both an index and a glossary, which would be additions that could strengthen the text.

Content Accuracy rating: 4

The text explains 11 different types of literature reviews that students may encounter or be asked to create. Also, the text is framed to work with multiple methodologies; for example, steps for writing a research question or a hypothesis to frame the literature review are provided. One inconsistency I noted was in diagram 6.2: the APA citation is incorrectly capitalized for the journal title (which should use sentence, not title, capitalization).

The text also includes external links to sources, such as a videos, which provide students with multiple modalities in which to digest the information. An example of a literature review for both education and nursing is provided at the end of the book; instead of embedding these in the text, the hyperlinks refer the reader to the external site. This will be easy to change to a new example in the future, but checks will need to be done to ensure that all such external sources remain actively accessible.

Each chapter opens with learning objectives to help frame the content with which the reader is about to engage. Throughout the text, the language is approachable and reader-friendly. For example, when the text explains more factual components (i.e., what makes a literature review or what the basics of an effective literature review include), this information is presented in bullet points with hyperlinks to the original sources.

Each chapter follows a similar construction, which makes it accessible to the reader. For example, chapters end with a "Practice" and "Check Yourself" section to apply new learning and self-check responses (an answer key is provided in an appendix). Examples in these exercises are either related to nursing or education, continuing with the stated theme of the text.

When I used this text with my own students, I assigned chapters in isolation, since they had already taken a research methods course and were applying that knowledge to create a research proposal in a specific area of study in my course.

The book is organized in such a way that logically walks the reader through the literature review writing process. Clear headings (which are hyperlinked in the table of contents) also allow the reader to jump to specific parts with which they need additional support.

The interface of this document offered a lot of flexibility. Options allowed users to access the text online, or as a download in multiple file types (EPUB, Digital PDF, MOBI, XHTML, Pressbooks XML, Wordpress XML, and Open Document). These formats provide the reader with an opportunity to pick the interface that works best for them.

I did not see any grammatical errors in the text.

Cultural Relevance rating: 4

No culturally insensitive/offensive content was noted. A variety of examples of research topics were included from both nursing and education. Of the images/video thumbnails embedded in the text that involved people, all depicted White people except for 2 images; therefore, more intentional selection of culturally diverse visuals would be helpful in future versions of this text.

I feel this text was helpful to my students as they wrote their own literature reviews. The only weakness in their papers that I noted was their organization of their literature review based on themes/topic, which was addressed in Chapters 7- 8. I now know to focus more on this part of literature review writing with future students. This text is approachable and field-specific, and I will be using it again!

Reviewed by Bernita (Bernie) Missal, Professor, Bethel University on 12/14/18

This book includes all areas that a graduate student needs to begin a literature review. However metasynthesis could have also been included in types of literature review. read more

This book includes all areas that a graduate student needs to begin a literature review. However metasynthesis could have also been included in types of literature review.

This book is accurate although missing qualitative research.

Although content is up to date, some of the article examples need to be updated. (Example: articles published in 1981 and 1992 need to be updated to more recent articles.)

The book is clear and easy to follow. Bullet points were used throughout the book with short paragraphs which helps the student.

Each chapter follows the same format with narrative followed by practice and test questions.

Clear subheadings are used throughout the book.

This book is presented in a logical way and easy for the student to follow.

Images are clear and appropriate for the content.

No specific grammar issues were seen.

It would be helpful for students to include additional examples of cultural studies throughout the book

This book is an excellent resource for graduate students. It has helpful information for the preparation and process for a literature review. Examples of written literature reviews in chapter 8 or in an appendix would be helpful for students.

Reviewed by Nancyruth Leibold, Associate Professor, Southwest Minnesota State University on 6/19/18

The text is overall comprehensive, yet it breaks the information up into manageable parts. See the table of contents for an overview of the topics. The text is very quantitative driven in that the focus is on reviewing quantitative studies. The... read more

The text is overall comprehensive, yet it breaks the information up into manageable parts. See the table of contents for an overview of the topics. The text is very quantitative driven in that the focus is on reviewing quantitative studies. The book included information about PICO statements, but did not include PICO(T) or the time variable, which is not always used in every case. Population was included in the PICO explanation, but a bit more information on the population or aggregate narrowing could improve the PICO section. These items do not hinder use of the book, but these items would need further inclusion by the faculty member using the text as specific to the discipline.

The content in the book is very accurate.

The content in the book is current and should not be obsolete within a short period of time. Any updates would be easy to add.

The text is clear and easy to understand.

The internal organization and terminology of the book is consistent and logical

The text is set up in small reading sessions. The videos and learning activities are well done and break up some of the content, so there is a variety of presentation. The tutorials, figures, practice and self-test areas are also fantastic in that they are quality and sprinkled throughout the text.

The topics in the book are presented in clear and organized fashion. I particularly like the upbeat and personal writing tone of the book. This tone makes it seem like the authors are speaking to me.

The text is free of any significant interface issues. The book is available in many formats. I used the book online and I did have one navigational problem and that is when clicking on a video, it does not open in a new tab and so the book is lost and have to start over going in the start to the book. One easy solution to this is to right click your mouse and then select open in new tab to watch videos. That way, your place in the book is not lost.

No grammar problems present.

The book is not culturally insensitive or offensive in any way.

Overall, this is a well written textbook and I recommend it!

Reviewed by Marjorie Webb, Professor, Metropolitan State University on 6/19/18

From the Introduction to the Conclusion, the text covers the step-by-step process of conducting a literature review. The text includes topics such as, “Where to find the Literature” and “Synthesizing Sources” that will be useful to graduate... read more

From the Introduction to the Conclusion, the text covers the step-by-step process of conducting a literature review. The text includes topics such as, “Where to find the Literature” and “Synthesizing Sources” that will be useful to graduate nursing students.

The content in the text, including texts, links, and diagrams, is accurate and unbiased. Again, it will aid the graduate nursing student in the long process of conducting a literature review.

The text is current and this type of material does not become dated quickly. The authors did use internet links in the text which will need to be monitored periodically to ensure they are still available. Updates to the text will be relatively easy and straightforward. If media styles change, there may be some challenges to updating.

The text is clear and easy to read. Technical terminology is defined and/or explained.

The text is internally consistent.

The text is organized in sections which facilitates assigning readings based on the subject matter for the class time. It would be pretty easy to divide up this text into easily readable units based on headings and subheadings.

This text is structured well. The topics flow in an organized manner and really help the student see the process of a literature review. The authors discuss the both theory and purpose of the review and the day-to-day logistics of actually performing the review. The day-today organization is not always included in other texts.

The interface is well-done with no distractions.

There was no indication of cultural bias.

I think this text is appropriate for graduate nursing students. Some students struggle with the difference between writing about a topic (generally undergraduate writing) and synthesizing literature on a given topic (generally graduate writing). Chapters seven and eight focus on preparing the graduate student to make the jump to graduate-level writing and should really benefit new graduate students.

Reviewed by Susanna Thornhill, Associate Professor , George Fox University on 3/27/18

This book is fairly comprehensive and offers step-by-step instructions for conceptualizing/researching a literature review. The Table of Contents is well-organized to reflect the book's progression, from establishing the basics of why to write a... read more

This book is fairly comprehensive and offers step-by-step instructions for conceptualizing/researching a literature review. The Table of Contents is well-organized to reflect the book's progression, from establishing the basics of why to write a literature review and the various types of literature reviews, to getting started with formulating a research idea/question, finding and evaluating sources, synthesizing sources, and guidelines on writing the literature review, itself. I found this text to be a straightforward guide for my graduate students in education, and while I worried at first that the merging of education and nursing topics would prove distracting to my education students, I don't believe this was the case.

One thing that was not comprehensive in this book was discussion of qualitative research and methodologies as a valid means of conceptualizing research aims. I hoped for a more balanced discussion between methodological branches as it applied to literature reviews; this book overly favored quantitative methodologies and studies in terms of its direction to readers about how to conceptualize/choose a topic and design a research question in relation to it. Variables that cannot be measured are not inherently un-researchable, which is the conclusion put forth in this textbook. This might serve nursing students better than education students in terms of their discipline's requirements, but it still represents an element that could be improved.

Finally, while the background on what a literature review is, how to conceptualize research, and how to search for and synthesize research was all valuable, the chapter on actually writing the literature review was a bit thin, simply offering tips for introduction, body, and conclusion and some questions for self-evaluation. Some of the most difficult work for students writing a literature review is achieving proper focus, organization, hierarchy of themes, balance in treatment of related topics, etc. None of these issues were discussed in the chapter pertaining to the writing of a literature review.

I did not have any concerns about the book's accuracy. Content was accurate, albeit biased to quantitative and positivist views of research. I would have liked to see it include additional prompts to support students in conceptualizing and valuing qualitative research; this is an area where I had to supplement course readings with additional texts.

The only significant error I could discern in the text was a lack of an Answer Key corresponding to the questions posed at the end of each chapter.

Content is up-to-date and seems like it will hold meaning well over the next few years. The only things I anticipate might go out-of-date is technological information on things like citation managers, search guidelines, and database information. This is easily updatable with future versions of the text. In my view, ERIC is not the best database for educational research and I have confirmed this with educational librarians who support my students, yet it is the only one identified in this text as the best subject-specific source of educational research; this could be revised for additional relevance.

I noticed no issues with the book's clarity. The authors write in a clear and straightforward style, making the text easy to read. Overall, they did well writing for students across two disciplines by avoiding nursing or education-specific terms that would have been problematic to readers in the other discipline.

The book is internally consistent and did not have issues with terminology or framework.

No issues with the book's modularity. Chapter headings and sub-headings were appropriately paced and spaced. I assigned this textbook to my graduate students as a whole text that I wanted them to read at the beginning of a course, but it has been easy to refer them back to particular topics as the course has continued.

In future iterations of the book, I suggest hyperlinking the Answer Key to the exercises at the end of each chapter and/or listing the Answer Key in the Table of Contents for easy referral.

I found the book's organization to be straightforward and sensible. The Table of Contents offers a helpful snapshot of the scope of the book and the authors write in a direct and clear style, which contributes to an appropriate flow for the text.

I did not note any navigation problems with any links. All charts/images loaded well in my iBook app. The authors did a nice job of pulling relevant content and links in to support their ideas; it provided an easy way to seek more information if I wanted it, without feeling like the text was loaded down with unnecessary information.

I only found a few small typos in the text, with no grammar issues. The book is obviously written by two very detail-oriented librarians. I appreciated the clarity of the text and lack of errors.

The text was not culturally insensitive; a variety of topics across nursing and education were discussed as examples, which yielded a fairly balanced text regarding cultural considerations.

Reviewed by Alicia Rossiter, Assistant Professor, University of South Florida on 3/27/18

I believe the book gives a comprehensive overview on how to complete a literature view at the graduate level. It begins with an overview of the purpose of a literature review and moves through the steps to completing the review process. read more

I believe the book gives a comprehensive overview on how to complete a literature view at the graduate level. It begins with an overview of the purpose of a literature review and moves through the steps to completing the review process.

I believe the book was accurate and unbiased. It was easy to read but comprehensive.

Content within the text is relevant and supports the literature view process. It did discuss the various databases for searches which may need updating to include new sites, search engines but otherwise relevant and useful information.

The text is easy to read, provides appropriate examples, includes a section on putting the process into practice as well as a "test yourself" section to ensure the content is understood.

The text is consistent throughout in regards to terminology, framework, and set up.

The text is easy to read and content is leveled for the reader but not over simplified. Content is chunked into sections making it easy for the reader to digest the content. The chapters are well laid out and flow from chapter to chapter. Each chapter contains learning objectives, content sections, practice section, and test yourself section. Well organized and great visuals.

Topics are presented in a logical, clear fashion that flow from chapter to chapter and build as the reader moves through the process.

The text is free of interface issues. I could not get the videos to play but other visuals were appropriate and useful to support content.

The text contains no grammatical errors.

The text is not culturally offensive. There was no evidence of bias or cultural insensitivity.

I think this would be a great resource for graduate student learning to navigate the literature review process. It is easy to read, straightforward, and guides the individual through the process from start to finish. I will recommend this text to my graduate students in evidence-based practice and research courses as a recommended reference.

Table of Contents

• Chapter 1: Introduction
• Chapter 2: What is a Literature Review?
• Chapter 3: How to Get Started
• Chapter 4: Where to Find the Literature
• Chapter 5: Evaluating Sources
• Chapter 6: Documenting Sources
• Chapter 7: Synthesizing Sources
• Chapter 8: Writing the Literature Review

Ancillary Material

About the book.

Literature Reviews for Education and Nursing Graduate Students is an open textbook designed for students in graduate-level nursing and education programs. Its intent is to recognize the significant role the literature review plays in the research process and to prepare students for the work that goes into writing one. Developed for new graduate students and novice researchers just entering into the work of a chosen discipline, each of the eight chapters covers a component of the literature review process. Students will learn how to form a research question, search existing literature, synthesize results and write the review. The book contains examples, checklists, supplementary materials, and additional resources. Literature Reviews for Education and Nursing Graduate Students is written by two librarians with expertise guiding students through research and writing assignments, and is openly licensed.

About the Contributors

Linda Frederiksen is the Head of Access Services at Washington State University Vancouver.  She has a Master of Library Science degree from Emporia State University in Kansas. Linda is active in local, regional and national organizations, projects and initiatives advancing open educational resources and equitable access to information.

Sue F. Phelps is the Health Sciences and Outreach Services Librarian at Washington State University Vancouver. Her research interests include information literacy, accessibility of learning materials for students who use adaptive technology, diversity and equity in higher education, and evidence based practice in the health sciences

Contribute to this Page

DBA Student Research Guide: Literature Review

• Dissertations
• Literature Review
• Research Methods
• Citation Management
• Data & Statistics
• E-Books & Videos
• Marketing Management
• Project Software

Literature Review - What is it? How do I write one?

Lit review p.45

Lit review p.122

Lit review p.59

Lit review. p.31

Lit review ch.9

Video. Literature Review: An Overview

Literature Reviews: An Overview for Graduate Students

Produced by North Carolina State University

What is the role of a literature review in research? What's it mean to "review" the literature? Get the big picture of what to expect as part of the process.

Literature Review - Tips

The literature review: a few tips on conducting it.

Written by Dena Taylor, University of Toronto.

• The Literature Review: A few tips on conducting it

Sage Research Methods. Literature Review

Project planner - reviewing the literature.

The Project Planner in the  Sage Research Methods   library database addresses all your questions about the literature review.

• Explains what a literature review is.
• Defines the steps in a literature search and a literature review.
• Gives you an overview of where to look for appropriate literature.

The Project Planner takes you through the literature review process, explains the reasons for reviewing the literature, and differentiates between the types of literature available.

From the Sage Research Methods homepage, select Tools >> Project Planner .

Publishing Journal Articles: Tips for Early-Career Scholars

Write It Up: Practical Strategies for Writing and Publishing Journal Articles by By Paul J. Silvia

A Guide to Publishing for Academics by Jay Liebowitz

• << Previous: Dissertations
• Next: Research Methods >>
• Last Updated: Oct 16, 2024 9:55 AM
• URL: https://ggu.libguides.com/dba