lecture lit review

8/6/2019 Lecture Lit Review

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The Literature Review

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Organization of this lecture

The Literature Review:

• Purposes of the Literature Review

• The Literature Review Process

• Search Aids, Key Words, Reading, &

Notes

• Writing the Literature Review

• Referencing

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• Before we can create new knowledge, wemust first know the current state of

knowledge about our research subject.

• Effective researchers will use knowledge and

insights of others and draw on elements of

prior research.• In the literature review, the task is to learn as

much as you can from the efforts and work of

others – which is published in the “scientificliterature”.

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Purposes of the Literature Review• The central purpose of the Literature Review is

to provide the researcher (and the reader) with

an understanding of literature about theproposed research.

• This includes the strengths and weaknesses!

• The research problem is the focus of theliterature review

•

But the literature may be related to theresearch project in several ways – through the problem, the objectives, the conceptual

framework , and methods and procedures. 4



•

Prior research that addressed a similarproblem or had similar objectives is relevant –

you should know how others approached

their problem and objectives.

• Likewise the approaches and procedures used

by others can suggest what is likely to work for

you.

• Studies can be related through both

similarities and differences – the differencesare especially important in methods and

procedures.

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Specific purposes, functions and benefits of aliterature review include:

A. Prevents duplication of what has already been

done (Some duplication or confirmation of research is necessary, but excessive duplication iswasteful)

B. Help to identify new areas where research isneeded (and how new research can contribute)

C. Provides ideas and direction for:

1. How to handle problems encountered2. Techniques

3. Sources of data

4. Novel approaches for the research



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D. Helps develop insights on design of your own study by showing what has (and has not) been previously successful

E. May reveal conceptual insights into the problemand/or suggest possible hypotheses for your ownstudy

A formal (written) literature review may not benecessary for all studies (eg. Problem-solvingresearch for industry )

But research should never be undertaken withouta literature review. To do so risks, unneeded duplication, repeating mistakes and inefficient

research



The Literature Review Process• Not all literature should be included in the

review – only “scientific literature”.

•

This is literature which has been through a peerreview process. This includes professional journals, formal research reports, university-affiliated bulletins, reports and monographs.

• Also includes similar publications by researchfoundations and international organizations.

•This does not insure that these are infallible, oreven correct – but they have been throughindependent checks of accuracy and

correctness. 8



•

“Popular” publications should not be includedeg. Newspapers, news magazines, or industry

or popular publications.

• Even well respected publications, such as theWall Street Journal , or The Economist are not

appropriate sources for a literature review.

(However, these sources may be useful to the

researcher as background information during

problem formulation)

• The literature review is intended to provide

an overview and summary of prior reliable

knowledge. 9



The Research Library

• A necessity for conducting research, is access

to a research library.• This library will have the facilities, trained

staff and access to specialized literature,

necessary to carry out scientific research.• It must have the ability to locate and obtain

all of the literature that you need.

• Research libraries can access literature fromother libraries – often in electronic form.

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Search Aid

• Standard search aids include indexes, abstracts,and bibliographies.

•

These search tools are located in the researchlibrary and many now are computerized.

• But not all relevant materials are availableelectronically, so computer and hard copysearches are necessary.

• Also, many indexing and abstract services lagbehind current literature (as much as severalyears) so it is useful to check current issues of major journals for relevant literature.

• Dissertation abstracts should not be overlooked.11



Key Words

• These are individual words and phrases which

describe the topic you are studying.

• Selecting good key words is very important

– if too limited, you may overlook relevant

literature; – if too broad, you may spend time locating and

reviewing literature with little relation to your

topic.• The best advise is to start with broad key

words, then narrow to a more confined list.

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•

Defining key words may be difficult – there areno specific guidelines

• Focus on key words and phrases which define

the topic• This includes words relevant to the problem,

objectives, conceptual framework and

methods or procedures.

• It may be helpful to review prior research that

used analytical techniques or certain issuesthat you intend to study. These techniques or

issues would be included in the key words.

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Reading

• It is often useful to start reading with the mostrecent publications. This allows:

1) Focusing more quickly on current knowledge,2) Recent research often includes references to

relevant earlier research

•First read the abstract or summary todetermine relevance and whether to reviewthe article.

• As you read, keep in mind that the centralpurpose is to identify and describe therelevance of the study to your research

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Notes

• Be sure you have a complete citation of each

source.

•

Keep written notes – don’t rely on memory.• Be thorough and systematic in keeping notes;

note problem, objectives, methods, findings

and conclusions

• Note questions, shortcomings or problems

with the study.

• Notes can be on note card, full sheets of

paper, or directly in word processing files

(which can use the “search” function). 15



Writing the Literature Review

• Literature reviews, like any part of a proposal,need organization.

• It should not be a series of unconnectedsummaries of studies, but rather a synthesis of previous related literature.

• Develop an outline of the literature review,before you start to write.

•

Start with an introduction section, and end witha short summary that pulls all the main pointstogether.

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• Use subheadings to organize the literature

review and direct the reader’s attention.

• These are usually subject-matter headings,

which logically group studies with a similarfocus.

• The literature review should summarize, but

not repeat information. Seek to analyze,

compare and contrast the literature reviewed.

•

Direct quotations can be useful, but usesparingly. Be reluctant to reproduce graphs or

tables.

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• Be sure to include the economic foundationsliterature related to your research. Anoverview of conceptual thinking, analyticalprocedures, and the progression of research

can put your work in perspective.

• It can be difficult to know when to summarizethe published information and when to justrefer to it. This primarily depends on thebackground of your audience.

• Do not reference a source of an idea without actually having read it .

(Another person’s summary and interpretation maydiffer from your own)

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Referencing

• Referencing previous literature occurs

throughout research proposal and research

reports, but is used most in the literature

review.

•We reference other literature to: – Provide supporting (or contrary) evidence for the

views we write about

– Assign credit for an idea, concept or result

– Add information and details on matters discussed

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• Giving credit for thoughts, ideas, efforts and

contributions of others is an important ethical

issue.

• Plagiarism is the failure to give credit for anidea or research result to it’s originator.

• Presenting someone else’s words or ideas as

your own is not only wrong but can hurt your

professional standing

•

By properly referencing and giving credit forother’s work, you show that are aware of the

state of knowledge in your subject and are

familiar with the work of leaders in the field. 20



• The style used in referencing may vary with

the type of publication, as well as your

personal preference.

• Footnotes (notes at the bottom of the page)or Endnotes (similar notes placed at the end

of the paper) can be used, if allowed.

• Most commonly used is parenthetical

referencing, which provides the author’s last

name, year of publication, and sometimes the

page number. eg. (Ethridge, 2004, p.122)

• The cited references then all appear in the

Reference section at the end of the paper. 21



• Another possible style is to use a number inparentheses eg. (4), with a numberedReferences list at the end of the paper.

• Many different styles are used for theReferences section. It is best to refer to thestyle used by the agency or publication towhich you are submitting the paper.

eg. Ethridge, Don. 2004. Research methodology inapplied economics. Ames, IA: Blackwell Publ.

•

Finally, the referencing of internet sources isnot fully resolved. Generally, include the fullweb address and date of access of thewebsite.

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