REVIEW OF RELATED

LITERATURE
Prepared by:
Medie June P. Ariston, Ph.D.
Professor
LITERATURE REVIEW –
AN OVERVIEW
 It provides the reader with a comprehensive review of
the literature related to the problem under
investigation.
 It should greatly expand upon the background
information already incorporated in the introduction
section.
 It should be selective and critical.
 It should only discuss relevant studies and provide a fair
evaluation of them.
 If no studies of your specific topic exist, look for parallel
or broader ones.
 Since the literature review maybe lengthy, it is essential
to divide into sections and subsections as needed to
logically organize the information presented.
WHAT IS LITERATURE REVIEW?
A summary is a recap of the important
information of the source, but a
synthesis is a re-organization, or a
reshuffling, of that information.
It might give a new interpretation of old
material or combine new with old
interpretations.
WHAT IS LITERATURE REVIEW?
Or it might trace the intellectual
progression of the field, including major
debates.
And depending on the situation, the
literature review may evaluate the
sources and advise the reader on the
most pertinent or relevant.
WHAT IS LITERATURE REVIEW?
The format of a review of literature may vary
from discipline to discipline and from
assignment to assignment.
A review may be a self-contained unit -- an
end in itself -- or a preface to and rationale
for engaging in primary research. A review is
a required part of grant and research
proposals and often a chapter in theses and
dissertations.
WHAT IS LITERATURE REVIEW?
Generally, the purpose of a review is to
analyze critically a segment of a published
body of knowledge through summary,
classification, and comparison of prior
research studies, reviews of literature, and
theoretical articles.
WHAT IS LITERATURE REVIEW?
A literature review is the effective evaluation
of selected documents on a research topic.
A review may form an essential part of the
research process or may constitute a
research project in itself.
In the context of a research paper or thesis
the literature review is a critical synthesis of
previous research.
The evaluation of the literature leads logically
to the research question.
 WHAT IS LITERATURE REVIEW?

A ‘good’ literature review….. A ‘poor’ literature review is…..

….. is a synthesis of available research …..an annotated bibliography

….. is a critical evaluation ….. confined to description
….. has appropriate breadth and depth ….. narrow and shallow
….. has clarity and conciseness ….. confusing and longwinded
….. uses rigorous and consistent ….. constructed in an arbitrary way
methods
WHY WRITE LITERATURE REVIEW?
Literature reviews provide you with a handy
guide to a particular topic. If you have
limited time to conduct research, literature
reviews can give you an overview or act as a
stepping stone.
Literature reviews also provide a solid
background for a research paper's
investigation. Comprehensive knowledge of
the literature of the field is essential to most
research papers.
WHY WRITE LITERATURE REVIEW?
For professionals, they are useful reports
that keep them up to date with what is
current in the field.
For scholars, the depth and breadth of
the literature review emphasizes the
credibility of the writer in his or her field
WHY WRITE LITERATURE REVIEW?
The purpose of a literature review is for you to
take a critical look at the literature (facts and
views) that already exists in the area you are
researching.
A literature review is not a shopping list of
everything that exists, but a critical analysis
that shows an evaluation of the existing
literature and a relationship between the
different works.
It demonstrates the relevance of the
research.
WHY WRITE LITERATURE REVIEW?
Literature can include books, journal articles,
internet (electronic journals), newspapers,
magazines, theses and dissertations,
conference proceedings, reports, and
documentaries.
Literature reviews are written occasionally in
the humanities, but mostly in the sciences
and social sciences; in experiment and lab
reports, they constitute a section of the
paper.
Sometimes a literature review is written as a
paper in itself.
WHY WRITE LITERATURE REVIEW?
 In the context of a research paper on a thesis, the
literature review provides a background to the study
being proposed.
 The background may consider one or more of the
following aspects depending on the research
question being posed:
 Theoretical background – past, present or future
 Clinical practice – previous or contemporary
 Methodology and/or research methods
 Previous findings
 Rationale and/or relevance of the current study
WHY WRITE LITERATURE REVIEW?
In a broader context Hart (1998) lists the
following purposes of a review:
Distinguishing what has been done from what
needs to be done;
Discovering important variables relevant to
the topic;
Synthesizing and gaining a new perspective;
Identifying relationships between ideas and
practice;
Establishing the context of the topic or
problem;
WHY WRITE LITERATURE REVIEW?
Rationalizing the significance of the problem;
Enhancing and acquiring the subject
vocabulary;
Understanding the structure of the subject;
Relating ideas and theory to applications;
Identifying methodologies and techniques
that have been used;
Placing the research in a historical context to
show familiarity with state-of-the-art
developments.
WHY WRITE LITERATURE REVIEW?
Its purpose is to:
Place each work in the context of its
contribution to the understanding of the
subject under review
Describe the relationship of each work to
the others under consideration
Identify new ways to interpret, and shed
light on any gaps in, previous research
WHY WRITE LITERATURE REVIEW?
Its purpose is to:
Resolve conflicts amongst seemingly
contradictory previous studies
Identify areas of prior scholarship to
prevent duplication of effort
Point the way forward for further research
Place one's original work (in the case of
theses or dissertations) in the context of
existing literature
WAYS OF STRUCTURING A
LITERATURE REVIEW
WAYS OF STRUCTURING YOUR
LITERATURE REVIEW :

chronologically; although be
careful not just to list items; you
need to write critically, not just
descriptively;
WAYS OF STRUCTURING YOUR
LITERATURE REVIEW :

by theme; this is useful if there

are several strands within your
topic that can logically be
considered separately before
being brought together;
WAYS OF STRUCTURING YOUR
LITERATURE REVIEW :

by sector e.g.: political

background, practice background,
methodological background,
geographical background, literary
background;
WAYS OF STRUCTURING YOUR
LITERATURE REVIEW :

by development of ideas; this

could be useful if there are
identifiable stages of idea
development that can be
looked at in turn;
WAYS OF STRUCTURING YOUR
LITERATURE REVIEW :

by some combination of the

above, or by another structure
you create.
WAYS OF STRUCTURING YOUR
LITERATURE REVIEW :

by some combination of the

above, or by another structure
you create.
COMPONENTS OF A
LITERATURE REVIEW
CITING RELATED LITERATURE
USING STANDARD STYLE
It is important (morally & legally) to
acknowledge someone else’s
ideas or words you have used.
REFERENCING
REFERENCE

Is the detailed description of the

document from which the
researcher obtained the
information
WHY REFERENCE?

Because you use the standardized style

to acknowledge the source of
information
Referencing correctly enables the
marker or reader of your assignment to
locate the source of the information.
WHY REFERENCE?

Referencing also allows for you to

retrace your steps and locate
information you have used for
assignments and discover further
views or ideas discussed by the
author.
WHY REFERENCE?

By referencing clearly and

correctly, it demonstrates you have
undertaken research on the
assignment topic and located
relevant information.
CITING RELATED LITERATURE
USING STANDARD STYLE
 It is important (morally & legally) to acknowledge someone
else’s ideas or words you have used.
REFERENCING
REFERENCE
 Is the detailed description of the document from which the
researcher obtained the information
WHY REFERENCE?

 Because you use the standardized style to acknowledge the

source of information
 Referencing correctly enables the marker or reader of your
assignment to locate the source of the information.
WHY REFERENCE?

 Referencing also allows for you to retrace your steps and locate
information you have used for assignments and discover further
views or ideas discussed by the author.
WHY REFERENCE?

 By referencing clearly and correctly, it demonstrates you have

undertaken research on the assignment topic and located
relevant information.
THERE ARE TWO MAIN PARTS TO
REFERENCING:

1. Indicates within your assignment the sources of the information

you have used to write your assignment. This demonstrates
support for your ideas, arguments and views.
Sometimes this is referred to as: citing in text, in text
citations or text citations

2. The construction of a reference list.

The reference list shows the complete details of everything
you cited and appears in an alphabetical list on a separate
page, at the end of your assignment.
HOW TO REFERENCE

In text Citations
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Direct Quotations
HOW TO REFERENCE

The Reference List

BASIC RULES

1. The reference list is arranged in alphabetical

order of the authors’ last names.
BASIC RULES

2. If there is more than one work by the same

author, order them by publication date – oldest
to newest (therefore a 2004 publication would
appear before a 2008 publication).
BASIC RULES

3. If there is no author the title moves to that

position and the entry is alphabetized by the
first significant word, excluding words such as
“A” or “The”. If the title is long, it may be
shortened when citing in text.
BASIC RULES

4. Use “&” instead of “and” when listing

multiple authors of a source.
BASIC RULES

5. The first line of the reference list entry is left-

hand justified, while all subsequent lines are
consistently indented.
BASIC RULES

6. Capitalize only the first word of the title and

of the subtitle, if there is one, plus any proper
names – i. e. only those words that would
normally be capitalized.
BASIC RULES

8. Do not create separate lists for each type of

information source. Books, articles, web
documents, brochures, etc. are all arranged
alphabetically in one list.
REMEMBER THESE WS

 Who – wrote /edited it – author or editor

 When was it written – date
 What is it – title of book, title of the article & serial/journal, title of
the web document
 Where was it published (Books) – place of publication– usually
city & country and publisher’s name
 Where was the article located (Serial/journal) - volume number,
issue number and page numbers of the article
 Where you located it (Internet sources) - URL – web address
INDICATORS OF RELIABLE SOURCES

doi
 TECHNIQUE IN WRITING RRL FOR
EASY REFERENCE
Issues/ Author/ Title Methods Results Conclusion
Themes Source
THANK YOU!