Tips on Writing a Literature Review

A literature review must provide a critical analysis of a certain source, literature, or topic. When writing a literature review, your goal is to evaluate a certain piece while also providing classification, summary, and comparison. Literature reviews of the postgraduate level may be written in the form of a report, article, or thesis. Just like other types of essays, standard literature reviews consist of the three main components, such as an introduction, body, and conclusion. Unlike when dealing with an annotated bibliography, you don’t have to list and summarize all the sources. Team of writing experts at writers-house.com prepared this article so that you can learn everything you need to know about literature reviews.

Why Do We Need Literature Reviews?

Writing a literature review is a common assignment at university that allows you to demonstrate your understanding of a certain topic or literature. You can demonstrate your understanding by analyzing different types of information:

• Provide an overview of the key points;
• Explain what has already been written on this subject;
• Determine strengths and weaknesses;
• Determine main patterns and relationships;
• Find gaps in the research;
• Find good evidence;
• Provide the necessary background information.

How to Write a Literature Review

• First, you should understand what is the purpose of your review. What is your specific task? What do you need to discover or explain? Make sure to check your assignment so that you can write exactly what you should.
• When you have a topic, you must find good resources. We recommend that you spend enough time searching for literature.
• You should also determine what kind of literature you need. Make sure to select the right types of sources. These may be authoritative and relevant scholarly articles, books, web resources, reports, or government documents.
• The number of sources depends on the type of literature review you’re going to write. For example, if you’re writing an undergraduate level review, five sources might be enough, but you may use dozens of sources when working on a thesis. Talk to your lecturer to clarify any important details.
• Make sure to write down important bibliographical information, such as the title of a publication, its date, author, page numbers, and publisher. You will need this information later when formatting citations and writing your bibliography section.
• Read all of your sources and pay your attention to the arguments, approaching them critically. Take your notes and write down your main ideas and themes. You may also use tables or concept maps to understand how different sources relate to each other.
• Once you’ve read your sources, analyze them. To provide a proper critical analysis, answer the following questions:
  • How is this source related to your topic?
  • What are the key concepts and terms?
  • What is the structure of the argument?
  • What are the main patterns and trends?
  • How credible and authoritative is this source?
  • Are there any gaps that need additional research?
  • What are the differences and similarities between different sources?
• Write your review. Start with a thesis statement that will introduce your topic and present your main argument, serving as a basis for the entire paper. After this, write the introduction, main body, and conclusion.

The Structure

Introduction

The introduction must explain why you’re writing this review and why your topic is important. It should also define the scope of your review, explaining what exactly you’re going to address. The introduction also defines the criteria for your source selection and the organizational pattern of the paper.

Body

Every body paragraph must focus on a particular subject that is directly related to your topic. You will have to synthesize a few of your sources into one paragraph, explaining the connection between different sources. In addition, you should provide critical analysis and explain how each source contributes to your topic. Make sure to include the following information:

• Historical background;
• Methodology;
• Previous research;
• Mainstream and alternative opinions;
• The most important questions being asked;
• Conclusions.

Conclusion

Your conclusion must summarize the main similarities and differences in literature, research gaps, and your opinion on the topic.

A Literature Review Checklist

Ask yourself whether you have:

• Outlined the purpose of your review and its scope;
• Written down bibliographical details;
• Found credible literature;
• Conducted critical analysis of your sources;
• Pointed out the gaps in research;
• Explored theories, methodologies, and hypotheses;
• Written the three main parts (introduction, body, conclusion);
• Proofread your paper.