LESSON 4:

REVIEW OF
R E L AT E D
L I T E R AT U R E
Dr. Racidon P. Bernarte
Agenda

• Nature of Literature Review

• Literature Review is NOT
• Classification of Literature Review
• Importance, Purposes and Functions of Literature Review
• The Review of Literature in the Research Process
• Characteristics of Related Literature and Studies
• Steps in Doing Literature Review
• Organizing the Literature Search
• Structure of literature review
• Organization of literature review
• Writing the Literature Review
• Common Errors in Reviewing Literature
Nature of Literature Review
• A literature review is a document or section of a document that
collects key sources on a topic and discusses those sources in
conversation with each other (also called synthesis).
• The Review of related literature involves the systematic identification,
location, and analysis of documents containing information related to
the research problem.
• A literature review is a survey of scholarly sources on a specific topic.
It provides an overview of current knowledge, allowing you to identify
relevant theories, methods, and gaps in the existing research.
Nature of Literature Review

A discussion of your knowledge about the topic under

study

A discussion of your knowledge that is supported by the

research literature

A foundation for the study

 A study-by-study, or article-by-article, description of
studies previously done

Literature A re-statement of the studies previously done

Review is
NOT A brief overview of articles

A good literature review doesn’t just summarize sources

– it analyzes, synthesizes, and critically evaluates to give
a clear picture of the state of knowledge on the subject.
 Related Literature is composed of discussion of
facts and principles to which the present study
is related. (usually found on published books,
encyclopedias, professional journals,
magazines, newspapers, and other publications)
Classification
of Literature Related Studies, are inquiries or investigations
Review already conducted to which the present
proposed study is related or has some bearing
or similarity. (e.g. usually unpublished materials
such as manuscripts, theses and dissertations)
 Helps or guide the researcher in
searching for or selecting a better
research problem or topic.

Importance, Helps the investigator understand his

Purposes and topic for research better.

Functions of
Literature Ensures that there will be no duplication
of other studies.
Review
Helps and guide the researcher in
locating more sources of related
information
 Importance, Purposes and Functions of Literature Review

• Helps and guide researcher in making research design especially in:

• the formulation of specific questions to be researched on
• the formulation of assumptions and hypotheses if there should be any
• the formulation of conceptual framework
• the selection and application of sampling techniques
• the selection and application of research methods
• the selection and/or preparation and validation of research instruments for gathering data
• the selection and application of statistical procedures
• the analysis, organization, presentation, and interpretation of data
• the making of the summary of implications for the whole study
• the formulation of the summary of findings, conclusions, and recommendations
The Review of
Literature in
the Research
Process
 The surveyed materials must be as recent as possible.

Materials reviewed must be objective and unbiased.

Characteristics
of Related Materials must be relevant to the study .

Literature Surveyed materials must have been based upon

genuinely original and true facts or data to make them
valid and reliable.

Reviewed materials must not be too few nor too many.

 Search for relevant literature

Steps in Evaluate sources

Doing Identify themes, debates and gaps

Literature
Review Outline the structure

Write your literature review

 Identify Identify search words related to the research questions

Connect Connect your search words

Searching RL
Effectively Use search tricks
•Search for DOI number
Use •Search for Citation Count of the Article
•Search for Indexing of the Article

Improve your search results

•Narrow and refine your search results by date, type of publication, subject
Improve •Keep track of your searches
•Manage your references
 University library catalogue

Research Databases (Scopus and Web of Science)

Google Scholar

Useful Research Gate

JSTOR (A digital library of academic journals, books, and primary sources)

Databases for EBSCO
Searching RL ProQuest (humanities and social sciences)

ERIC (for Education)

Medline (life sciences and biomedicine)

EconLit (economics)

Inspec and ArXiv (physics, engineering and computer science)

 What question or problem is the author addressing?

What are the key concepts and how are they defined?

What are the key theories, models and methods? Does the research

Evaluate use established frameworks or take an innovative approach?

What are the results and conclusions of the study?

and Select How does the publication relate to other literature in the field? Does it
confirm, add to, or challenge established knowledge?

Sources How does the publication contribute to your understanding of the

topic? What are its key insights and arguments?

What are the strengths and weaknesses of the research?

Make sure the sources you use are credible, and make sure you read
any landmark studies and major theories in your field of research.
 Trends and patterns (in theory, method or results): do
certain approaches become more or less popular over
time?

Identify Themes: what questions or concepts recur across the

literature?
Themes,
Debates, and Debates, conflicts and contradictions: where do sources
disagree?
Gaps
Pivotal publications: are there any influential theories or
studies that changed the direction of the field?

Gaps: what is missing from the literature? Are there

weaknesses that need to be addressed?
Outline of Literature Review’s Structure

Chronological. Trace the development of the topic over time. However, if you choose this strategy, be careful to avoid
simply listing and summarizing sources in order. Try to analyze patterns, turning points and key debates that have
shaped the direction of the field. Give your interpretation of how and why certain developments occurred.

Thematic. If you have found some recurring central themes, you can organize your literature review into subsections
that address different aspects of the topic.

Methodological. If you draw your sources from different disciplines or fields that use a variety of research methods, you
might want to compare the results and conclusions that emerge from different approaches.

Theoretical. A literature review is often the foundation for a theoretical framework. You can use it to discuss various
theories, models, and definitions of key concepts.
 Introduction. The introduction should clearly establish the
focus and purpose of the literature review. Gives a quick idea
of the topic of the literature review, such as the central
theme or organizational pattern.
Writing the
Body. Depending on the length of your literature review, you
Literature might want to divide the body into subsections. You can use a
subheading for each theme, time period, or methodological
Review approach. Contains your discussion of sources.

Conclusions/Recommendations. In the conclusion, you

should summarize the key findings you have taken from the
literature and emphasize their significance.
 Plagiarism includes (Galvan, pg. 89):

Using another writer’s words without proper citation

Writing the Using another writer’s ideas without proper citation

Literature Citing a source but reproducing the exact word without

quotation marks

Review Borrowing the structure of another author’s

phrases/sentences without giving the source

Borrowing all or part of another student’s paper

Using paper-writing service or having a friend write the paper

 Use prescribed style and format (APA style &
format)

Have your work proofread before submitting

Writing the
Literature Follow all format guidelines (University format
guidelines)
Review
Must be a thorough review, reflected by the depth
of the discussion

Should begin prior to the implementation of the

study
 Hurrying through review to get started could mean that
you will miss something that will improve your research.

Relying too heavily upon secondary sources.

Common
Errors in Concentrating on findings rather than methods.
Reviewing
Literature Overlooking sources other than academic journals. Don’t
forget newspaper articles, magazines, blogs, etc.

Searching too broad or too narrow of a topic.

Inaccuracy in the compiling of bibliographic information.

LESSON 4:
REVIEW OF
R E L AT E D
L I T E R AT U R E
Dr. Racidon P. Bernarte
ASSIGNMENT
• Based on your approved research topic, collect at least 10
related literature to be used as foundation of your research.
Make a summary table of the collected literatures using the
Synthesis Matrix. Make a 10 page write up of the review of
literature thematically.

• Submission should be through google drive in PDF file. Due

date of submission:
• Summary Matrix (Synthesis Matrix) on June 12, 2021.
• 10-Page Write up of Literature Review on June 19, 2021.