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GEOG_GEOL4120: Introduction to Research: Literature Review

Developed to provide a quick review for students in Geology and Geography Introduction to Research. Use the tabs to refresh your memory on accessing a variety of library resources.

This is an excellent video from NC State on the processes involved in a literature review.   It is a little lengthy, but worth watching! 

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Books:

Here are some titles from the Zach S Henderson Library catalog to help guide you as you write your Literature Review and Research Proposal.

Bitmoji image of woman with question markWhat is a review of the literature?

A literature review is an account of what has been published on a topic by accredited scholars and researchers. Occasionally you will be asked to write one as a separate assignment (sometimes in the form of an annotated bibliography), but more often it is part of the introduction to an essay, research report and/or proposal, or thesis. In writing the literature review, your purpose is to convey to your reader what knowledge and ideas have been established on a topic, and what their strengths and weaknesses are. As a piece of writing, the literature review must be defined by a guiding concept (e.g., your research objective, the problem or issue you are discussing, or your argumentative thesis). It is not just a descriptive list of the material available, or a set of summaries.

*Written by Dena Taylor, Health Sciences Writing Centre   (University of Toronto)

What a Literature Review is NOT:

A literature review is a piece of discursive prose, not a list describing or summarizing one piece of literature after another. It's usually a bad sign to see every paragraph beginning with the name of a researcher.

Instead, organize the literature review into sections that present themes or identify trends, including relevant theory. You are not trying to list all the material published, but to synthesize and evaluate it according to the guiding concept of your thesis or research question.  (Taylor, D.)

Step 1: Search the Literature

Use a variety of sources: books, articles, conference proceedings, government reports, thesis and dissertations, etc!  Do NOT rely solely on electronic full-text material (which is readily available).  Reference resources, such as dictionaries, may be useful in defining key terminology, and encyclopedic sources may provide a good introduction in to specific areas of the topic. 

The MOST IMPORTANT PART of this step is to REVIEW and ANALYZE the literature you collect!  The review process is ongoing - you may need to go back to locate additional materials as you identify new ideas to see if others have written on similar topics.

During the review, you can begin to notice patterns in the literature, and to separate your findings in to different categories. 

Step 2: Write the Review

Remember, a literature review is NOT simply a list of the resources with a summary of each one!

You can organize the review in many ways; for example, you can center the review historically (how this topic has been dealt with over time); or center it on the theoretical positions surrounding your topic (those for a position vs. those against, for example); or you can focus on how each of your sources contributes to your understanding of your project.

Reviewing the Literature is an Adventure!

Remember! All you have to find is two or three really strong sources, and then let those sources lead you to others!

  • Be sure to scan the References of any source you find! This will lead you to additional sources!
    • If you don't know how to find a source from the citation in a reference, please ASK! I'll be happy to walk you through the process!
  • Be sure to use that "Cited By" or "Times Cited in this Database" feature of the database. This will lead you to Newer additional sources!
  • You can also use the "Find Similar" or "See Related" articles feature! 

Exploring the research in a field is exciting and may lead you to an area of research you never imagined!