Review of Literature

Before considering what literature to use in a project, first identify a topic to study and reflect on whether it is practical and useful to undertake the study. Describe the topic in a few words or in a short phrase. One way is to draft a brief title to the study and it should be done early in the projects. In the authors opinion the working or draft title becomes a major road sign in research-a tangible idea that the researcher can keep refocusing on and changing as the project goes on, she finds that in her research the topic grounds her and provides a sign of who she is and to convey to others the central notion of her study.

The Research Topic

The subject or subject matter of a proposed study
Describe in a few words The central idea you want to learn about

The topic can be researched if

You have access to participants You have resources to collect and analyze information

The topic should be researched if

The research will add to the literature about the topic Scholars will be interested in the topic A study of it will advance your personal goals

The Research Topic

A common short coming of beginning researchers is that they frame their study in complex and erudite language. This perspective may result from reading published articles that have undergone numerous revisions before being set in print. Good sound research begins with straight forward uncomplicated thoughts easy to read and understand.

The Research Topic

Eliminate unnecessary words like an approach to.. A study of.. Use a single or a double title. A double title would be an ethnography: understanding a childs perception of war. Eliminate most articles and nouns and up to 12 words is enough.

The Research Topic

Actively elevating this topic to a research study calls for reflecting on whether the topic can be and should be researched. The question of should is a more complex matter. Like does the research add to the pool of research knowledge available on the topic, replicates past studies, lifts up the voices of underrepresented groups or individuals, helps address social justice or transforms the ideas and beliefs of the researcher.

The Research Topic

A first step in any project is to spend considerable time in the library examining the research on a topic. Given a choice between a topic that might be of limited regional interest or one of national interest the latter might be preferred. Consider the time it takes to complete a project, revise it and disseminate the results. All researchers should consider how the study and its heavy commitment of time will pay of in enhancing career goals, whether these goals relate to doing more research, obtaining a future position or advancing toward a degree.

The Literature Review

Shares the results of other studies Relates the study to the larger dialogue in the literature Provides a framework for establishing the importance of the study Provides a benchmark for comparing the results to other findings

The Literature Review

The literature review accomplishes several purposes. It shares with the readers the results of other studies that are closely related to the one being undertaken. It relates a study to the larger ongoing dialogue in the literature filling in the gaps and extending prior studies.

Steps in Conducting a Literature Review

Identify key words Search library catalogs Identify about 50 research reports in articles or books Photocopy those that are central to your topic Design a literature map Draft summaries of the relevant articles Write a literature review, organizing it by important concepts

Selecting Literature Material

Start with broad syntheses (such as encyclopedias) if you are new to the topic Turn to journal articles in national journals
Best source for research reports

Next consider books Then examine conference papers Scan for dissertations Last consider reports on the web

Abstracting Studies
Draft abstracts that summarize selected articles

For research studies:

Mention the problem State the central purpose State information about the population and sample Review key results Point out methodological flaws (if a methodological review)

For nonempirical studies (essays, opinions, etc.)

Mention the problem State the central theme State the major conclusions Mention flaws in reasoning or logic (if a methodological review)

The Literature Review

In a qualitative research inquires use the literature in a manner consistent with the assumptions of learning from the participant, not prescribing the questions that need to be answered from the researchers stand point. One of the chief reasons for conducting a qualitative study is that the study is exploratory. This usually means that not much has been written about the topic or the population being studied and the researcher seeks to listen to participants and build an understanding based on what is heard.

The Literature Review

In theoretically oriented studies such as ethnographies or critical ethnographies the literature on a cultural concept or a critical theory is introduced early in the report or proposal as an orienting framework. In grounded theory, case studies and phenomenological studies literature is less often used to set the stage for study.

The Literature Review

There are three placements for the literature in the qualitative research when it is placed in the introduction the literature provides a useful backdrop for the problem or issue that has led to the need for the study such as who has been writing about it who has studied it and who has indicated the importance of studying the issue. This framing is contingent upon the availability of studies.

The Literature Review

A second form is to review the literature in a separate section a model typically used in quantitative research, often found in journals with a quantitative orientation. In theory oriented qualitative studies such as ethnography critical theory or an advocacy or emancipatory aim the inquirer might locate the theory discussion and literature in a separate section typically toward the beginning of the write up.

The Literature Review

The researcher may incorporate the related literature in the final section where it is used to compare and contrast with the results or themes to emerge from the study. This model is especially popular in grounded theory studies and I recommend it because it uses the literature inductively.

The Literature Review

Quantitative research on the other hand includes a substantial amount of literature at the beginning of a study to provide direction for the research questions or hypothesis. At the end of a study the literature is revisited by the researcher and a comparison is made between the results with the existing findings in the literature.

Integrative literature review

In this approach the researcher summarize broad themes in the literature. This model is popular in dissertation proposals and dissertations.

Theoretical Review
In this approach the researcher focuses on extant theory that relates to the problems under study. This form appears in journal articles in which the author integrates the theory into the introduction.

Methodological Review
In this approach, the researcher focuses on the methods and definitions. These review may provide both a summary of studies and a critique of the strengths and weaknesses of the methods section. This approach is not seen frequently in dissertations.

Mixed methods Study

If the researcher begins with a quantitative phase then the investigator is likely to include a substantial literature review that helps to establish a rationale for the research questions or hypothesis. If the study begins with a qualitative phase then the literature is substantially less and the researcher may incorporate it more into the end of the study- an inductive approach.

Summary of the qualitative methods.

In a qualitative study, use the literature sparingly in the beginning in order to convey an inductive design, unless the design type requires a substantial literature orientation at the outset. Consider the most appropriate place for the literature in a qualitative study and base the decision on the audience for the project. Keep in mind the options: placing it at the beginning to frame a problem, placing it in an another section or at the end to compare and contrast with the findings.

Summary of the quantitative methods.

Use the literature in a quantitative study deductively as a basis for advancing research questions or hypothesis. In a quantitative study plan use the literature to introduce the study describe related literature in a separate section and to compare findings. If a separate review is used consider whether the literature will be integrative summaries, theoretical reviews or methodological reviews. A typical practice in dissertation writing is to advance an integrative review.

Summary of the Mixed Methods

In a mixed methods study, use the literature in a way that is consistent with the major type of strategy and the qualitative or quantitative approach most prevalent in the design.

The Use of Literature

Quantitative studies use literature to
Provide direction to the research questions and hypotheses Introduce a problem Introduce a theory Compare results with existing literature or predictions

Qualitative studies use literature to

Introduce the problem or issue Describe an orienting framework (but not set the direction) Compare and contrast findings

Mixed methods studies use

Either a quantitative or qualitative approach

Design Techniques

Design Techniques
A literature review means locating and summarizing the studies about a topic, often these are research studies but could be conceptual articles or thought pieces that provide frameworks for thinking about topics. Begin by identifying key words, useful in locating materials in an academic library at a university.

Design Techniques
With these key words in mind next go to the library and begin searching the catalog for holdings (journals and books). Initially try to locate about 50 reports of research in articles or books related to research on your topic. Skim this initial group of articles or chapters and duplicate those that are central to the topic.

Design Techniques
As the useful literature is identified begin designing a literature map. This is a visual picture of groupings of the literature on the topic that illustrates how your particular study will contribute to the literature, positioning your own study within the larger body of research summarize the articles. These summaries are used in the literature review.

Priority for selecting literature material

Especially if you are examining a topic for the first time and unaware of the research on it start with broad synthesis of the literature such as overviews found in encyclopedias. Next turn to journal articles in respected national journals especially those that report research studies. Follow up on references at the end of the articles for more sources to examine.

Priority for selecting literature material

Turn to books related to the topic. Follow this research by recent conference papers, make contact with authors of pertinent studies, seek them out at conferences email them. Ask them if an instrument could be used or modified for use in your study.

A Literature Map of the Research

One of the first tasks for a researcher working with a new topic is to organize the literature. It is a useful tool for students to use when organizing their review of the literature for making presentations to graduate committees or summarizing the literature for a scholarly presentation or a journal article publications.

Literature Map
One could be a hierarchical structure with a top down presentation of the literature ending at the bottom with the proposed study. Another might be similar to a flow chart in which the reader understands the literature as unfolding from left to right with the farthest right hand section advancing a proposed study. A third model might be a series of circles with each circle representing a body of literature and the intersection of the circles the place in which the future research is indicated.

A Quantitative or Mixed Methods Literature Review

A suggested model
Introduce the review with a statement about the organization of the sections Review literature about the independent variables Review literature about the dependent variables Review literature that relates the independent variables to the dependent variables Provide a summary
Highlight important studies Capture major themes Suggest why more research is needed Advances how the proposed study will fill this need