Literature Review – how to conduct

We will talk about BOTH:(1)“Literature Review” as the

qualitative methodological approach

(2)“literature review” as a step in the Research process

“Literature Review” (upper-class “L”s)

is a qualitative method• Article characterized by

reporting primary studies that compose body of literature

• Sometimes…– Annotated bibliography –

descriptive analysis of primary studies

– New arguments - using primary studies to support new hypotheses

– Expert opinions - Providing expert summary of history of literature, including organization, synthesis, analysis, and insights into future

“literature review” (lower-case “l”s) occurs at THREE stages

AnalyzingData

CollectingData

ResearchIdea

ResearchDesign

Publication Process

Pick a topicTranslate topic into QuestionTranslate into HypothesisPreemption search

Selecting the methodological approachOperationalizing variables/materialsCrafting procedures/paradigmsDetermining sampleEvaluating the practicality of the research

Approval for study via IRBPreparation to conduct studyRecruiting subjectsConducting the studyCoding and entering data

Data preparation and screeningEvaluating sample statisticallyEvaluating materials statisticallyEvaluating procedures statisticallyAnalyzing research HypothesisInterpreting the results

Deciding when to start writing paperHow to write psychology manuscriptsHow to write in APA formatHow to decide where to submit manuscriptJournal review processTalks, posters, and other ways to disseminate your work

Pre-productionPre-production ProductionProduction Post-productionPost-production

(1) Research Idea – for pre-emption search(2) Research Design – for getting materials/procedures(3) Publication Process – for writing “Introduction”

What are similarities/differences between the two?

• Similarities = all pre-writing aspects are the same, such as– identifying topic – inclusion/exclusion criteria – collecting literature – summarizing it – interpreting it

What are similarities/differences between the two?

• Difference = writing stage, such as– Literature Review

(1) Annotated BibliographyDescribe each primary study; paragraph per at minimum; few paragraphs per at maximum; include major points including hypothesis and design; can group studies together if relevant; opinions and comments to minimum

(2) New ArgumentsGroup primary studies according to arguments; discuss studies only as relevant to arguments; provide critique; opinions and comments to maximum

(3) Expert OpinionSummarizing studies as relevant to history, current trends, and future research; highlighting most important studies; opinions and comments to maximum

What are similarities/differences between the two?

• Difference = writing stage, such as– literature review

(1) Research Idea phaseNo writing for literature review at research idea phase; only interested in gathering information for pre-emption

(2) Research Design phaseNo writing for literature review at research design phase;only interested in collecting measures/procedures

(3) Publication process phaseConcise mixture of all purposes of Literature Review; want to include descriptive analysis of primary studies; want to group studies according to arguments/hypotheses; want to provide expert opinions of history of topic, current trends of topic, and future research of topic.

Steps in conducting (pre-writing)

• Identify “core” resources– Primary (articles and books reporting original

content)

– Secondary (textbooks, books, Handbooks, etc)

• Branch out from there using…– Database searches– Descendancy approach– Ancestry approach– Hand searches– Invisible College

• Inclusion/Exclusion criteria• Keeping records

Steps in conducting (writing)

• Steps are based upon purpose behind the article (see previous slides)

• Some commonalities include:– Summarize– Interpret– Organize– Synthesize

Advanced Sources

• Synthesizing Research: A Guide for Literature Reviews, by Cooper, Sage publications, 1998.

• The Handbook of Research Synthesis, by Cooper and Hedges, Russell Sage publications, 1994