The literature review
Literature Review
On completion of this module you will be able to:
- describe the characteristics of a good literature review
- identify the purpose of a literature review
- undertake a literature review.
What is a literature review?
A literature review is more than a precis of past research or an annotated bibliography. It is a work of synthesis which provides the context for your own investigations.
In your literature review, you should:
- clarify your understanding of the field
- explain the rationale for your research
- place your research within a broader context
- evaluate the results of previous research
- define key concepts and ideas
- identify research in related areas that are generalisable or transferable to your topic
- identify relevant methodological issues.
A literature review ensures that you are at least familiar with the body of research in your field before starting your own investigations. Writing a literature review also provides practice in critical thinking. Once you have applied critical thinking skills to the findings of past researchers, you are in a better position to apply these same skills to your own work.
We stand on the shoulders of giants What does this mean? Although Sir Isaac Newton is often given credit for the phrase, it actually dates back to the twelfth century. In his Metalogicon, John of Salisbury (d. 1180) observed that "Bernard of Chartres used to compare us to dwarfs perched on the shoulders of giants. He pointed out that we see more and further than our predecessors, not because we have keener vision or greater height, but because we are lifted up and borne aloft on their gigantic stature." What did Bernard of Chartres mean by this metaphor? The answer is that Bernard believed that scholars of his age were able to surpass the thinkers of classical antiquity only because they were able to build on their predecessors' genius. As Bernard recognised, every researcher owes a debt to those who came before. Although a literature review must be critical, it does not have to be a demolition job carried out on previous workers in your field. |
What is a synthesis?
The most effective literature review is synthesis of previous research. What does this mean? Synthesis is the process through which separate parts are combined to form a coherent whole.
In everyday terms, every study or experiment results in a series of observations. These observations point towards a particular explanation for a specific phenomenon and can be regarded as a thesis. Other studies or experiments might confirm these original observations or point towards another explanation (a counterthesis). A synthesis explains the apparently contradictory results of earlier studies. It achieves this goal either by showing that some observations must be disregarded as irrelevant or erroneous or by demonstrating that the divergence between the results was more apparent than real. Many syntheses, of course, do both.
What is involved in writing a synthesis?
After reading your literature review, the reader should come away with a deeper understanding of your topic. When writing, draw out the implications of past research. Point out where past research is heading and where your research makes a contribution. It is equally important to break-down the main strands of academic debate. Identify the most influential authors, and to trace their impact on subsequent research. Note areas of disagreement, or where different researchers have failed to take notice of relevant research.
A good literature review sets out the gaps in current understanding. It seeks to explain these reasons why gaps persist. Some problems have not been thoroughly investigated for technical or practical reasons. In other cases, gaps are the result of methodological or theoretical "blind-spots". Identifying these can lay the foundation for new insights.
Examine the differences in method used by different investigators. Ask yourself how different methodologies might have affected the results.
Although a literature review is sometimes organised chronologically, such a framework should not be applied in a mechanical manner. Research rarely proceeds in a strict linear fashion. The same topic often attracts the simultaneous interest of a number of researchers, all of whom might employ a range of different approaches. If you base your literature review on a purely chronological precis of past research, you risk sacrificing analysis to description.
| What is a synthesis anyway? The word synthesis is Greek, but it reached English through Latin in the seventeenth century. The modern idea of a synthesis is derived from the thesis, anthithesis, synthesis model of the German philosopher Johann Gottlieb Fichte (1762-1814). Fichte argued that existence involved a continual process of evolution. Each thesis (or idea) generates its antithesis. The conflict between thesis and antithesis is resolved through a synthesis, an idea which transcends them both. Fichte's model was taken up by Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770-1831), and much later by Karl Marx (1818-1883). The important point is a synthesis is a step forward, not simply a recapitulation of what came before. |
What makes a good literature review?
Some of the characteristics of a good literature can be grouped under a number of convenient headings
Objective
Do not write your literature review as if you were a barrister defending a client. Evidence should not be slanted in one way or another.
Comprehensive
Comprehensiveness does not mean that you should mention every research report, article or paper that has ever been published on your subject. Concentrate on the most widely cited authors and the most significant findings.
Relevant
A tight, analytical focus is important. Resist the temptation to widen the scope of your literature review so that it ends up covering every topic conceivably related to your original field.
Clearly written.
If you over-use jargon and write in complicated sentences, you will find it harder to convince your reader that you really understand your subject.
Accurately referenced
If you don't reference correctly, the reader is unlikely to have great confidence in your analytical powers.
Read widely
Don't limit your research to books or article published in Australia, the United Kingdom or the United States. Even if your reading is restricted to English-language materials, don't ignore research published elsewhere. Apart from obvious source-countries as New Zealand, Ireland or Canada, English-language scholarship is published in Hong Kong, the People's Republic of China, Japan, the Netherlands, France, Finland and Germany.
 | Learning by example Find one or more recent Masters or PhD theses in a field related to your research in the University library or a digital thesis collection (see Finding Theses). Read the literature review chapter. Has the author been successful in providing a clear synthesis of past research? Would you have written the chapter differently? |
Finding relevant material
The best literature reviews are based on a systematic search of the academic literature. In the past, students were often advised to start from the most recent articles and work backwards. This advice was based on the assumption that a literature search was a matter of reading footnotes and bibliographies. Although this approach can still be useful, it is also worth remembering that you can search more effectively using keywords in electronic indexes and databases.
How much is enough?
There are no rules about how many references are required for a good literature review. In most instances, this will depend on the nature of your research and the size of the existing literature. Controversial, widely-debated topics will require additional reading. If a particular topic is relatively obscure and has not attracted much attention, your bibliography might be smaller than otherwise. Consult your supervisors and follow their advice.
Making sense of the literature
As you work through the literature, keep your topic in mind. Resist the temptation to follow up research that seems interesting for it own sake.
A systematic approach will save you time. One technique is to write down a set of questions and refer to them when reading each piece of research. If you make notes as you go, you will find the task of writing up the literature review much easier.
| Writing a literature review Although this module is not intended to cover the mechanics of writing, you might find the advice given on the following pages useful:
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My topic is unique
Be wary of too easily coming to the conclusion that nothing has been written on your topic. In one sense this might possibly be true. There are some topics so new that they have largely escaped previous academic enquiry. In practice, however, you will probably discover that any topic is connected to the existing body of research.
Let's assume, for example, that you are studying the process of state-building in a newly-independent island nation in the Pacific. The literature on this new country might be very thin to non-existent. However, state-building and microstates in the Pacific have attracted wide interest from academics in recent decades. It is likely the academic literature relevant to your research topic is actually quite large.
This issue applies across disciplines, but is particularly important with the social sciences. If you are, say, studying alcohol abuse by young people in a small rural community in New South Wales, you need to look at the literature regarding the abuse of alcohol and other drugs in different parts of Australia, and in other countries.
| Further reading Two books in the University Library collection provide further assistance in writing a literature review. | |
 | Leonie Elphinstone and Robert Schweitzer (1988) How to get a research degree: A survival guide, Allen & Unwin, St Leonards, NSW. Call No 371.30281/H847 |
 | Chris Hart (1998) Doing a literature review: Releasing the social science research imagination, Sage, London. Call No 300.72/H325d |
Summary
This module dealt with the following topics:
- the characteristics of a literature review
- the purpose of a literature review
- how to assess information for the purpose of a literature review.
 | Self-test Try these quick self-test questions to assess what you have learnt from this module. |