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Literature Reviews

This guide is an introduction to writing a literature review.

References

Anson, Chris M. and Robert A. Schwegler. The Longman Handbook for Writers and Readers. 6th edition. New York: Longman, 2010.

Jones, Robert, Patrick Bizzaro, and Cynthia Selfe. The Harcourt Brace Guide to Writing in the Disciplines. New York: Harcourt Brace, 1997.

Lamb, Sandra E. How to Write It: A Complete Guide to Everything You’ll Ever Write. Berkeley, Calif.: Ten Speed Press, 1998.

Eaton, Sarah E. How many sources do you need in a literature review? {Blog post]:  https://drsaraheaton.wordpress.com/2014/02/19/how-many-sources-do-you-need-in-a-literature-review/ : retrieved January 12, 2020.

Machi, Lawrence and McEvoy, Brenda Rosen, Leonard J. and Laurence Behrens. The Allyn and Bacon Handbook. 4th edition. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 2000.

Troyka, Lynn Quitman. Simon and Schuster Handbook for Writers. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 2002.

The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

      https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/literature-reviews/ : retrieved August 30, 2019

Bloomsburg Library of Pennsylvania

      https://guides.library.bloomu.edu/litreview : retrieved January 8, 2020

Final Thoughts

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.

If you are writing an annotated bibliography, you may need to summarize each item briefly, but should still follow through themes and concepts and do some critical assessment of material. Use an overall introduction and conclusion to state the scope or your coverage and to formulate the question, problem, or concept your chosen material illuminates. Usually you will have the option of grouping items into section--this helps you indicate comparisons and relationships. You may be able to write a paragraph or so to introduce the focus of each section.

Reprinted with permission from the authors, Dena Taylor, Director, Health Sciences Writing Centre, and Margaret Procter, Coordinator, Writing Support, University of Toronto. Copyright 2001. All rights reserved.