Literature Review

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‘What should I be reading,
and what do I do with it all?’

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 What is Literature Review?

A literature review is a written summary of journal articles,

books, and other documents that describes the past and
current state of information on the topic of your research
study.

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 “
‘I not only use all the brains
that I have, but all that I can
borrow.’ Woodrow Wilson

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 What is Literature Review?
The production of new knowledge is fundamentally dependent
on past knowledge. Knowledge builds, and it is virtually
impossible for researchers to add to a body of literature if they
are not conversant with it. Put simply, working with literature
is an essential part of the research process. It inspires,
informs, educates, and enlightens. It generates ideas, helps
form significant questions, and is instrumental in the process
of research design. It is also central to the process of writing
up; a clear rationale supported by literature is essential, while
a well-constructed literature review is an important criterion in
establishing researcher credibility
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 1.
Types of Literature

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 Types of Literature

Discipline-based reference materials: It’s easy for those

who speak the language of a particular discipline to forget that
many of its terms are not a part of everyday speech. If you are
relatively new to a particular discipline or paradigm, subject-
specific dictionaries and encyclopedias can help you navigate
your way through the discipline’s central terms, constructs,
and theories.

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 Types of Literature

Subject-specific books: Introductory and advanced texts,

anthologies, research reports, popular non-fiction, and even
fiction works can provide background and context, while
seminal or foundational works, often produced as books, can
be core to your formal literature review. Books are also likely
to inform theory and method.

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 Types of Literature

Journal articles: These generally form the heart of a formal

literature review because
(a) they are often targeted at ‘academic’ audiences
(b) specificity of content and regularity of production means
that articles are likely to be both relevant and current
(c) in peer-reviewed journals, articles have met benchmarks
for credibility

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 Types of Literature

Official publications, statistics, and archives: Such

material can be a valuable source of background and
contextual information, and often helps shape a study’s
rationale. This type of literature, however, can also be used as
a source of data.

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Working With
Keywords
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General internet search engines, as well as search engines
specific to applicable databases rely on key words to find
relevant information. It is therefore essential that you are able
to identify your topic, subtopics, main variables, theories,
theorist, methods, key concepts, etc., in the form of key
words.

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MANAGING THE
LITERATURE
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Efficient and selective reading: It is unlikely that you will
be able to read every word of every piece of relevant
literature you have located. But if you can quickly and
efficiently wade through this literature in order to assess
relevance and importance, or in other words ‘get the gist’, you
can save yourself a lot of time and energy.

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Keeping track of references: There is more than one
student who has gone on a frantic last-minute hunt for that
lost reference. It could be a quote with a missing page
number, or a fact with no citation, or that perfect point that
needs to go right there, but you just don’t know what book it
was in. It is essential that each and every one of your sources
be incorporated into a management system to prevent it
becoming forever lost – just like socks in the laundry.

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 “
“Reading furnishes the mind
only with materials of
knowledge; it is thinking that
makes what we read ours.”
John Locke

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It would make a whole lot of sense if the purpose of a
‘literature review’ was to simply review the literature – but it
isn’t. Reviewing is a step along the way toward an end
purpose, not the end purpose itself. Perhaps this can explain
why the tendency for new researchers to simply review and
report on past research falls far short of most supervisors’
expectations.

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Inform readers of developments in the field – not only
should a research study provide your readers with information
about your particular research question, but it should also
provide rich learning about the general topic. The inclusion of
a strong literature review should provide readers with
contextual learning through an up-to-date account and
discussion of relevant contextual theories, methods, and
research studies that make up a particular topic’s body of
literature.

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Establish their own credibility – because researchers are
responsible for the production of new knowledge, it is
essential they can show they are abreast of the field; aware of
relevant new developments; and conversant with academic
and scientific discourse and debate within their research area.
The literature review allows researchers to establish such
credibility through rigorous and critical evaluation of relevant
research works; a demonstrated understanding of key issues;
and the ability to outline the relationship of their own work to
the rest of the field.
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Argue the need for, and relevance of, their study – the
literature review needs to make an argument for a
researcher’s own research agenda. It needs to set the current
study within the context of past research. The literature
review has the potential to identify ‘gaps’ that show the
appropriate and significant nature of a study’s research
questions. It can also justify methodological approaches by
critically evaluating methods generally accepted/typical for
this type of research; highlighting the limitations that might be
common to past studies; and uncovering the possibly
unwarranted assumptions that can underpin method.
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What is already known in the area?
What is not known or what are the gaps in the existing
body of knowledge?
What questions have remained unanswered?
Are there any areas of professional conflict?
What research strategies have been employed by
others undertaking similar research?

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