How to start a literature review for a research paper

How to start a literature review for a research paper

18/11/ · The literature review is a section in dissertation or research paper where you need to summarise existing research information of different scholars. It should be relevant to the topic and written from secondary sources. Mention all the scholarly opinion that exists on the topic or subject 22/2/ · If you are writing the literature review section of a dissertation or research paper, you will search for literature related to your research problem and questions. If you are writing a literature review as a stand-alone assignment, you will have to choose a focus and develop a central question to direct your search 29/11/ · The main purpose of the review is to introduce the readers to the need for conducting the said research. A literature review should begin with a thorough literature search using the main keywords in relevant online databases such as Google Scholar, PubMed, etc. Once all the relevant literature has been gathered, it should be organized as follows

How to Write a Literature Review for a Research Paper

Rishibha Sachdev. Many researchers struggle when it comes to writing literature review for their research paper. A literature review is a comprehensive overview of all the knowledge available on a specific topic till date. When you decide on a research topic, usually the first step you take in the direction of conducting research is learn more about the previous research published on the topic, and this eventually translates into literature review when you write your research paper.

Literature review is one of the pillars on which your research idea stands since it provides context, relevance, and background to the research problem you are exploring. Types of literature review. Literature reviews can be categorized as experimental and theoretical. Experimental literature review basically refers to surveying all the information available on a particular topic and critically analyzing the gaps that need to be worked upon.

In this sense, it essentially forms the first experiment of any research project. The more extensive the review, the more precise and systematic the research project will be. Theoretical literature review essentially involves two steps:. Literature review could be a part of a dissertation or research article and a stand-alone literature review.

Let us look at this in more detail. This forms the literature review for the article. The main purpose of the review is to introduce the readers to the need for conducting the said research.

A literature review should begin with a thorough literature search using the main keywords in relevant online databases such as Google ScholarPubMedetc. Once all the relevant literature has been gathered, it should be organized as follows:. Give the reader context and background about your research problem. Try this course for free with R Upskill Membership. A literature review should not be a mere recounting of all the available information.

It should be a critical and analytical summary of the selected literature that guides the readers through the how to start a literature review for a research paper theme of the research. Stand-alone literature reviews. Literature reviews can also be written as stand-alone articles. These are not different from the literature review sections described above; however, they are not followed by experimental data.

They basically fall into 2 broad categories: narrative reviews and systematic reviews. Narrative reviews. These are theoretical discussions of relevant information on a particular topic and its critical analysis.

These are mostly qualitative in nature similar to the review sections of larger articles. Narrative reviews are usually organized as follows:. Introduction that establishes the context of the field of research and the topic of the review. Body is normally used for describing the different themes under the main topic by dividing them into different subheadings.

This section compares and contrasts published studies and identifies gaps that have not been addressed or have been unsuccessfully addressed. This section differs slightly between reviews which are part of research articles and narrative reviews.

The section describes the main conclusions from analysis of all the current studies and puts forth further avenues for research. This section requires critical interpretation by the author such that the review adds value to existing literature.

Systematic reviews. On the other hand, systematic reviews follow a well-planned methodology to qualitatively or quantitatively analyze a defined number of studies.

They usually focus on a single question and have clear study objectives that are worked upon in a systematic manner, how to start a literature review for a research paper. These studies are based on a well-defined strategy unlike narrative reviews. Systematic reviews and narrative reviews are organized slightly differently. The details are described below:. Introduction: Systematic reviews begin with specific research questions that are defined in terms of the samples and research outcomes to be studied.

Methods only for systematic reviews : These studies have a comprehensive methodology that starts by narrowing down the literature for the review. Once the sample studies have been shortlisted, they are analyzed in detail. Results: The results section for these studies involves comprehensive data analysis to determine the significance of the study outcomes. Systematic reviews can be accompanied with Meta-analysis which involves statistical analysis of the included studies to increase the power of the results.

Discussion: This section usually interprets the study data based on their weighted significance and the power of the results. The study therefore provides strengthened results that are validated by the scientific rigor of the analytical method. Before starting to write a review, it is important to determine what kind of review you want to write and follow the appropriate style and guidelines.

An effective literature review is important for the complete life cycle of a research from defining the right research goals to correctly interpreting and presenting the research results, how to start a literature review for a research paper. If you wish to learn in more depth how to conduct literature search, check out this course designed exclusively for researchers: How to conduct an effective literature search and review.

Writing a literature review requires you to read through and collate several research articles and literature sources. This can get very confusing considering the large amount of publications that need how to start a literature review for a research paper be organized. There is no set way to do this as it will depend on your preference for reading printed articles or online resources. If you are old school and read printed articles better, then you should create a folder with all articles organized in this way:.

Alphabetically with the last name of the first author, or. Chronologically with the date of how to start a literature review for a research paper, or.

Thematically with different themes organized chronologically. For the more tech-savy users, organization of literature either by year of publication or themes would be more ideal. Citing and creating a reference list in your manuscript can be done either manually or by using reference management tools like Endnote from Clarivate analytics.

Endnote is an excellent way to store your research library and import it into the manuscript in the format required by the journal. The tips and guidelines in this post should help you write your literature review with ease. Related reading:. Create a free account and access this bonus resource. Get Instant Access. You're looking to give wings to your academic career and publication journey.

We like that! Why don't we give you complete access! One click sign-in with your social accounts. Sign up via email. Subscribe to Manuscript Writing. Translate your research into a publication-worthy manuscript by understanding the nuances of academic writing. Subscribe and get curated reads that will help you write an excellent manuscript. Confirm that you would also like to sign up for free personalized email coaching for this stage.

How to write the literature review of your research paper 7 min read. A young researcher's guide to writing a literature review 4 min read. A young researcher's guide to a systematic review 6 min read. Secondary research — the basics of narrative reviews, systematic reviews, and meta-analysis 6 min read. Recommended Courses. How to write the literature review of your research paper. Rishibha Sachdev Nov 29, Reading time, how to start a literature review for a research paper.

Types of literature review Literature reviews can be categorized as experimental and theoretical. Theoretical literature review essentially involves two steps: Surveying and critically reading the existing literature: this step is commonly referred to as experimental literature review.

Summarizing and actually penning down the gist of your review in an organized manner: this is known as theoretical review. How to write the literature review in a research paper? What will you learn? How to select a topic for initiating a thesis or clinical study PubMed search Various study designs.

Join Pubathon - a how to start a literature review for a research paper global research publishing event - to interact with leading journal editors and experienced researchers to get your questions on manuscript submission answered Feb, 2 PM GMT Find out more and register for free! Related Infographic. How is the background of a research study different…. Related Video. Conducting a systematic literature review.

Related Slide deck. How to write a literature review. A literature review is a critical summary of all the…. Bonus takeaway exclusively for community members Writing a literature review requires you to read through and collate several research articles and literature sources.

If you are old school and read printed articles better, then you should create a folder with all articles organized in this way: 1.

Alphabetically with the last name of the first author, or 2.

How to Write a Systematic Literature Review Paper for High Impact Factor Journals?

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The Literature Review | A Complete Step-by-Step Guide

29/11/ · The main purpose of the review is to introduce the readers to the need for conducting the said research. A literature review should begin with a thorough literature search using the main keywords in relevant online databases such as Google Scholar, PubMed, etc. Once all the relevant literature has been gathered, it should be organized as follows 25/10/ · Here is how to write literature reviews for all research papers: List all the sources used in the research paper. Start with the most relevant ones that contributed most to the understanding of your research problem. Explain the relationship between various references used to compose your research paper 18/11/ · The literature review is a section in dissertation or research paper where you need to summarise existing research information of different scholars. It should be relevant to the topic and written from secondary sources. Mention all the scholarly opinion that exists on the topic or subject