Communication Studies Courses: Literature Reviews

Literature Reviews are NOT Annotated Bibliographies

An Annotated Bibliography is a list of sources giving a summary and evaluation of each source.

A Literature Review is an overview of the previously published works on a given topic; the sources cited in the literature review are summarized and synthesized. 

• Summary - a condensed reiteration of the main points made in a source
• Evaluation - an assessment or judgment about a source
• Synthesis - a written discussion that connects together the ideas of one or more sources

Sources cited in a Literature Review are not evaluated in the written text -- it is assumed that all sources included in the review have been evaluated already and have been judged to be important to the conversation. 

Start by developing a Research Question

Once you have your research question, follow these steps:

• Search for relevant sources on your topic
  • Keep in mind that you may need to search in several databases and revise your search strings as you go
  • Be sure to pay attention to your assignment requirements; focus on sources that meet those requirements, such as scholarly sources, sources written within a certain timeframe, etc. 
• Select, Evaluate, and Read Sources
  • Though you won't do any evaluation of sources in your written Literature Review, you will want to evaluate the sources before you decide to include them in your review. You can use the CRAAP Test as a guide to evaluate sources.
  • If you find a source while searching that we do not have in full text, submit an InterLibrary Loan (ILL) request for it! This way, you can have a complete understanding of the source before including it in your review. Reading abstracts will not be enough.
• Summary & Synthesis of Sources
  • Identify themes, debates, and gaps of knowledge/discussion you see emerging between these sources.
  • How do all of these sources connect? What conversations are (and aren't) happening between scholars on this topic?
• Outline the structure of your Literature Review
  • You may decide to organize your review chronologically, thematically, methodologically, or theoretically. For more information about these options, watch the Scribbr video below. 
  • In many cases, your professors will want you to organize your review thematically, which means you will identify key themes emerging in the sources you're read and structure your paragraphs around these themes. 
• Write, Revise, Edit, Repeat!
  • Come to the research desk or schedule a research consultation to talk about using source material and citing your sources appropriately.
  • Go to the Writing Center to get advice on organizing your paper, making revisions and edits, formatting, and more.