library services literature review

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Literature Review: A Definition

What is a literature review, then.

A literature review discusses and analyses published information in a particular subject area.   Sometimes the information covers a certain time period.

A literature review is more than a summary of the sources, it has an organizational pattern that combines both summary and synthesis. A summary is a recap of the important information of the source, but a synthesis is a re-organization, or a reshuffling, of that information. It might give a new interpretation of old material or combine new with old interpretations. Or it might trace the intellectual progression of the field, including major debates. And depending on the situation, the literature review may evaluate the sources and advise the reader on the most pertinent or relevant.

But how is a literature review different from an academic research paper?

While the main focus of an academic research paper is to support your own argument, the focus of a literature review is to summarize and synthesize the arguments and ideas of others. The academic research paper also covers a range of sources, but it is usually a select number of sources, because the emphasis is on the argument. Likewise, a literature review can also have an "argument," but it is not as important as covering a number of sources. In short, an academic research paper and a literature review contain some of the same elements. In fact, many academic research papers will contain a literature review section. What aspect of the study (either the argument or the sources) that is emphasized determines what type of document it is.

( "Literature Reviews" from The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill )

Why do we write literature reviews?

Literature reviews provide you with a handy guide to a particular topic. If you have limited time to conduct research, literature reviews can give you an overview or act as a stepping stone.

For professionals, they are useful reports that keep them up to date with what is current in the field.

For scholars, the depth and breadth of the literature review emphasizes the credibility of the writer in his or her field. Literature reviews also provide a solid background for a research paper's investigation.

Comprehensive knowledge of the literature of the field is essential to most research papers.

Journal Articles on Writing Literature Reviews

• Research Methods for Comprehensive Science Literature Reviews Author: Brown,Barry N. Journal: Issues in Science & Technology Librarianship Date: Spring2009 Issue: 57 Page: 1 more... less... Finding some information on most topics is easy. There are abundant sources of information readily available. However, completing a comprehensive literature review on a particular topic is often difficult, laborious, and time intensive; the project requires organization, persistence, and an understanding of the scholarly communication and publishing process. This paper briefly outlines methods of conducting a comprehensive literature review for science topics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR];
• Research: Considerations in Writing a Literature Review Authors: Black,K. Journal: The New Social Worker Date: 01/01; 2007 Volume: 14 Issue: 2 Page: 12 more... less... Literature reviews are ubiquitous in academic journals, scholarly reports, and social work education. Conducting and writing a good literature review is both personally and professionally satisfying. (Journal abstract).
• How to do (or not to do) A Critical Literature Review Authors: Jesson,Jill; Lacey,Fiona Journal: Pharmacy Education Pub Date: 2006 Volume: 6 Issue: 2 Pages:139 - 148 more... less... More and more students are required to perform a critical literature review as part of their undergraduate or postgraduate studies. Whilst most of the latest research methods textbooks advise how to do a literature search, very few cover the literature review. This paper covers two types of review: a critical literature review and a systematic review. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
• Conducting a Literature Review Authors: Rowley,Jennifer; Slack,Frances Journal: Management Research News Pub Date: 2004 Volume: 27 Issue: 6 Pages:31-39 more... less... Abstract: This article offers support and guidance for students undertaking a literature review as part of their dissertation during an undergraduate or Masters course. A literature review is a summary of a subject field that supports the identification of specific research questions. A literature review needs to draw on and evaluate a range of different types of sources including academic and professional journal articles, books, and web-based resources. The literature search helps in the identification and location of relevant documents and other sources. Search engines can be used to search web resources and bibliographic databases. Conceptual frameworks can be a useful tool in developing an understanding of a subject area. Creating the literature review involves the stages of: scanning, making notes, structuring the literature review, writing the literature review, and building a bibliography.

Some Books from the WU Catalog

• The SAGE handbook of visual research methods [electronic resource] by Edited by Luc Pauwels and Dawn Mannay. ISBN: 9781526417015 Publication Date: SAGE Publications, Inc., 2020.

Helpful Websites

• "How to do a Literature Review" from Ferdinand D. Bluford Library
• "The Literature Review: A Few Tips on Conducting It." from the University of Toronto
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• Last Updated: Dec 4, 2023 1:49 PM
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Writing a Literature Review

• What is a Literature Review?
• Step 1: Choosing a Topic
• Step 2: Finding Information
• Step 3: Evaluating Content
• Step 4: Taking Notes
• Step 5: Synthesizing Content
• Step 6: Writing the Review
• Step 7: Citing Your Sources
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Getting Started With Library Research: Literature Review

• How to Search for KU Library Resources

Library Resources

• Standards & Resources
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What is a Literature Review?

A  literature review  is a comprehensive study and interpretation of literature that addresses a specific topic.

Literature reviews are generally conducted in one of two ways:

1) As a preliminary review before a larger study in order to critically evaluate the current literature and justify why further study and research is required.

2) As a project in itself that provides a comprehensive survey of the works published in a particular discipline or area of research over a specified period of time.  

Why conduct a literature review? They provide you with a handy guide to a particular topic. If you have limited time to conduct research, literature reviews can give you an overview or act as a stepping stone.

More:   different types of literature reviews  on how to conduct a literature review.

Literature Review Links

• PhD on Track: Types of Reviews Narrative & Systematic
• Purdue Owl: Literature Reviews
• Purdue OWL: Writing a Literature Review

How to Develop a Literature Review

How to develop a literature review from Academic Research Foundations: Quantitative by Rolin Moe

What is the Difference Between a Systematic Review and a Meta-analysis?

Dr. Singh discusses the difference between a systematic review and a meta-analysis.

Purpose of a Literature Review

Purpose of a literature review from Academic Research Foundations: Quantitative by Rolin Moe

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University Library

Write a literature review.

• Examples and Further Information

1. Introduction

Not to be confused with a book review, a literature review surveys scholarly articles, books and other sources (e.g. dissertations, conference proceedings) relevant to a particular issue, area of research, or theory, providing a description, summary, and critical evaluation of each work. The purpose is to offer an overview of significant literature published on a topic.

2. Components

Similar to primary research, development of the literature review requires four stages:

• Problem formulation—which topic or field is being examined and what are its component issues?
• Literature search—finding materials relevant to the subject being explored
• Data evaluation—determining which literature makes a significant contribution to the understanding of the topic
• Analysis and interpretation—discussing the findings and conclusions of pertinent literature

Literature reviews should comprise the following elements:

• An overview of the subject, issue or theory under consideration, along with the objectives of the literature review
• Division of works under review into categories (e.g. those in support of a particular position, those against, and those offering alternative theses entirely)
• Explanation of how each work is similar to and how it varies from the others
• Conclusions as to which pieces are best considered in their argument, are most convincing of their opinions, and make the greatest contribution to the understanding and development of their area of research

In assessing each piece, consideration should be given to:

• Provenance—What are the author's credentials? Are the author's arguments supported by evidence (e.g. primary historical material, case studies, narratives, statistics, recent scientific findings)?
• Objectivity—Is the author's perspective even-handed or prejudicial? Is contrary data considered or is certain pertinent information ignored to prove the author's point?
• Persuasiveness—Which of the author's theses are most/least convincing?
• Value—Are the author's arguments and conclusions convincing? Does the work ultimately contribute in any significant way to an understanding of the subject?

3. Definition and Use/Purpose

A literature review may constitute an essential chapter of a thesis or dissertation, or may be a self-contained review of writings on a subject. In either case, its purpose is to:

• Place each work in the context of its contribution to the understanding of the subject under review
• Describe the relationship of each work to the others under consideration
• Identify new ways to interpret, and shed light on any gaps in, previous research
• Resolve conflicts amongst seemingly contradictory previous studies
• Identify areas of prior scholarship to prevent duplication of effort
• Point the way forward for further research
• Place one's original work (in the case of theses or dissertations) in the context of existing literature

The literature review itself, however, does not present new primary scholarship.

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The land on which we gather is the unceded territory of the Awaswas-speaking Uypi Tribe. The Amah Mutsun Tribal Band, comprised of the descendants of indigenous people taken to missions Santa Cruz and San Juan Bautista during Spanish colonization of the Central Coast, is today working hard to restore traditional stewardship practices on these lands and heal from historical trauma.

The land acknowledgement used at UC Santa Cruz was developed in partnership with the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band Chairman and the Amah Mutsun Relearning Program at the UCSC Arboretum .

Graduate Students' Guide to Library Resources and Services

• Literature Reviews
• Search Tools & Strategies
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• Teaching Support

Literature Reviews: An Overview

This video was created by NCSU Libraries (CC-BY-NC-SA 3.0 License).

Getting Started with a Literature Review

• Get support at the Academic Writing Center

Literature Review: 4 Steps to Compose a Literature Review

• Meet your subject librarian

Find the subject librarian in your research area . They can help you determine the best databases and resources to use for a literature review in your field.

• Find a research guide

Use the  Research Guide  for your subject area to find the best databases and resources in your field or topic area of focus.Some research guides include pages on literature reviews.

What is a Systematic Review?

A systematic literature review (SLRs; also known as systematic review, systematic overview, evidence summary, or research synthesis) is a summary of the research literature that is focused on a single question.

The systematic review process has been developed to minimize bias and ensure transparency . Methods should be adequately documented so that they can be replicated .

Key components of a systematic review include :

• systematic and extensive searches to identify all the relevant published and unpublished literature
• study selection according to predefined eligibility criteria
• assessment of the risk of bias for included studies
• presentation of the findings in an independent and impartial manner
• discussion of the limitations of the evidence and of the review.
• Systematic Reviews & Library Assistance Information about systematic and integrative reviews for the health sciences
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Getting Started With Research: Literature Reviews

• Topic Development
• Finding Information
• Finding Information Online
• Evaluating Information
• Citing Information
• Literature Reviews

Literature Review

What is a literature review?

• Overview of published literature on an issue or topic
• Unlike a research paper, it does not present a new argument
• Tip:  Be sure to discuss major themes or disparities you see across the literature. How does each reading fit in with the rest?
• Can be part of a larger research project or completed as a standalone work

How should I organize my literature review?

Literature reviews can be organized in many different ways. Some approaches to consider:

• You might create sections for scholarly and popular publications, 
• Organizing your sources by publication date will show the topic's history.
• Tip:  This would be useful if you are completing a new study and want to demonstrate a gap in current research.

Why do literature reviews matter?

Literature reviews are helpful not only to your readers but they also benefit you because they:

• Avoid repeating research that's already been done
• Show new directions for research
• Help your reader understand the context of your research
• Identify different methodologies
• Highlight important themes and subtopics
• Previous: Citing Information
• Last Updated: Aug 7, 2023 1:44 PM
• URL: https://library.springfield.edu/beginning-with-research

Literature Reviews: Writing

• Conducting a literature review enables you to demonstrate your understanding and knowledge of the existing work within your field of research. Doing so allows you to identify any underdeveloped areas or unexplored issues within a specific debate, dialogue or field of study.
• The research process will tap into your skills constructing library searches, working with database results, and evaluating sources for relevance and validity.
• The written work will tap into your ability to logically structure a work and synthesise information from a wide variety of sources.
• A literature review will respond to, or be built around, a specific research question and/or research gap. Defining the gap(s) and question(s) is important for constructing a good search and refining your writing.

University of Southampton training resources

,  -  Writing the Literature Review

This online guide and corresponding video workshop cover the most common expectations for the literature review chapter of a dissertation. Whether the lit review you are writing is for a dissertation or another purpose, check out this guide and video for detailed, relevant guidance on structure, defining a research gap, what to avoid, and more.

,  -  Literature Review - Research Methods

This guide to writing a literature review forms part of the Research Methods module created by the University Library. It looks at the purpose of a literature review, describing different resource types, creating and conducting a literature search, evaluating resources and describing the main structural principles of a literature review chapter.

Additional resources

 - Writing a Literature Review (Coventry University)

A snappy guide covering the requirements at different academic levels.

- Scientific Literature Reviews (Dublin City University)

An in-depth guide to writing a scientific literature review with lots of guidance on literature searching, critical analysis and communication/writing skills.

 -  What is a Literature Review? (Royal Literary Fund)

A brief overview of what a literature review is, with starter tips for structure, searching and more. Great for beginners!

 - Literature Reviews (UNC Chapel Hill)

A very helpful online guide for students!

  -  Literature Reviews: An Overview for Graduate Students (NC State University)

A video guide with good details and illustrations of the literature review process.

 -  Doing Your Literature Review (University of Reading)

Video guide for planning and writing lit reviews.

• Last Updated: Nov 9, 2023 11:27 AM
• URL: https://library.soton.ac.uk/literature_reviews

To read this content please select one of the options below:

Please note you do not have access to teaching notes, the use of marketing concepts in library services: a literature review.

Library Review

ISSN : 0024-2535

Article publication date: 5 July 2013

Marketing supports the reaching of organizational goals by focusing on the identification and satisfaction of customer needs, thus it can also contribute considerably in achieving the objectives of non‐profit organizations such as libraries. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the literature on the incorporation of marketing notions and the implementation of marketing techniques in library management. It reviews definitions, present different opposing views, marketing issues, social media and Web 2.0 and opinions on the adoption of marketing in a non‐profit organization environment, and examines different successful examples of marketing implementation, concentrating on the gains resulting from such a move.

Design/methodology/approach

A thorough literature search on various databases and on various aspects of this topic was reviewed. The literature review is organised on emerging themes directly drawn from the literature, thematically and chronologically within each section. It aims to identify the changing perspectives, the current challenges, and the benefits offered by examining information science specialists' views. The main marketing concepts are identified throughout a strategic planning approach, which has been recommended as the most successful by the majority of researchers.

This paper examines and clarifies the existing misunderstandings and difficulties in library and information services marketing, and stresses the importance of its adoption in this contemporary competitive environment. It examines library marketing in six sections: misconceptions regarding library marketing, main challenges and reasons as to why the adoption of marketing concepts is an integral part of the strategic planning, reports on the international library organizations, provides a description of the implementation of strategic marketing and planning processes, presents some library marketing approaches and examines the contemporary technological opportunities for library marketing in the digital era, such as the use of Web 2.0 tools.

Originality/value

The paper broadens the library marketing literature by gathering researchers' scientific views and advice and identifies the main implementation concerns derived from the earlier and more recent relevant literature. Moreover, for the first time, IT records issues concerning library marketing, social media and Web 2.0.

• Library management
• Social media
• Library services
• Information services
• Library and information services
• Library marketing concepts
• Strategic library marketing
• Marketing mix
• Library 2.0

Garoufallou, E. , Siatri, R. , Zafeiriou, G. and Balampanidou, E. (2013), "The use of marketing concepts in library services: a literature review", Library Review , Vol. 62 No. 4/5, pp. 312-334. https://doi.org/10.1108/LR-06-2012-0061

Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2013, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

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Questions & More Information

Answers to the most commonly asked questions here

Conducting a Literature Review

• Getting Started
• Define your Research Question
• Finding Sources
• Evaluating Sources
• Organizing the Review
• Cite and Manage your Sources

Additional Resources

• Using Wikipedia by the University of Pittsburgh Library System

Finding Sources for a Literature Review: Introduction

There are multiple ways to find sources for your literature review, or any type of research project. Depending on your level of experience with the topic, the types of sources required by your assignment or research, or the resources you have available at the time, you may want to pursue one or more of the below methods of searching. (Tip: When in doubt, ask your professor what they recommend!)

Not all sources are created equal, and not all methods of searching are right for every purpose! Take care to think carefully about where you are in the research process, and determine which of these would be the best suited for your needs. If you need help with this step, professors, tutors, and librarians at ACPHS are always happy to help. 

Basic Information Gathering & Keyword Mining: Course notes, textbooks, Wikipedia

With a large research project, particularly one you don't have a great deal of foundational knowledge about, sometimes it can be daunting to even figure out where to start.

A good place to begin is with your course materials; if there is a specific class associated with the assignment, then you might have some useful information already available in course notes and textbooks associated with the class. Your textbook(s) might have a chapter or even more on the topic you're studying, and notes from your teacher might be a good place to find useful keywords and background information.

It's important to note that while you might be able to use these resources in many research assignments, they are not good sources for a literature review, because they do not reflect significant scholarly research in the area of study. The benefit to using these resources is gaining background information that can help you broaden or narrow your topic and/or find useful keywords that will assist you in hunting down the appropriate literature for your review. These can help you in the pre-research stage, the preliminary information gathering that will allow you to find the sources you can actually use more effectively. 

For this task, in addition to your class materials, you have another unlikely ally: the crowdsourced online encyclopedia, Wikipedia . 

Isn't Wikipedia a bad resource? (click to expand) 

In many ways, this is correct: Wikipedia can be edited by anyone at any time, and while information added to a Wikipedia article will usually be cited and mistakes are often removed quite promptly, the fact that this website can have hundreds of anonymous contributors means that it is not appropriate for use in an academic context such as a research assignment. Wikipedia articles can be vandalized as a joke or heavily biased based on who wrote the information, so it is always important when reading an article on Wikipedia that you remain skeptical, double-check the sources cited, and remain aware that you are not looking at information high enough for use in a scholarly or academic report.

For an illustration of the ways Wikipedia is not a great place to find high-quality academic information, take a look at the article "15 Biggest Wikipedia Blunders," a collection of mistakes, hoaxes, or even libel that have caused significant confusion. These blunders were possible because of Wikipedia's anonymous editing process. As you can see from one of Wikipedia's own articles on the subject , some hoaxes or mistakes can persist for years before being discovered.

What should we use Wikipedia for? (click to expand)

Despite its weaknesses, Wikipedia can be an excellent source for non-academic research, such as answering your own personal questions and curiosities; just because it does not meet the standard required for professional or academic research doesn't mean it's insufficient for casual or personal research. (In fact, some evidence suggests it reaches a similar level of accuracy as the Encyclopedia Britannica . The primary reason it cannot be used in your research is not so much because of fear of inaccuracies -- though that is a risk -- as it's impossible to verify the author(s) and their credentials.)

In addition to your own casual research, there are three major ways Wikipedia can be useful in the preliminary research process:

1. References

Because Wikipedia requires its authors to cite their claims, at the bottom of each article is a list of the sources used. If you need to know which books, articles, or other types of literature are the most important or commonly-cited in the field, Wikipedia's list of References is a good place to begin.

For example, looking at the reference list for the Estrildidae :

Of these seven sources, the articles by Frank Gill, C. H. Oliveros, and Urban Olsson (numbers 4-6) show particular promise due to their recent publication and their association with professional organizations and/or scholarly journals. Clicking on each of these, they are all free to access the entirety of, which is fortunate; if they were not open-access, however, it would still be worth saving these citations to check on in the ACPHS library, to see if you could access them through the college.

2. Background Information

While the information you discover on Wikipedia would not be sufficient for an academic assignment, it can be perfectly useful for getting a broad overview of the topic, seeing what the most common subtopics or recent developments are, and familiarizing yourself with key terms, major players, and general information.

When you first select a topic, it can often be helpful to skim through the Wikipedia page in order to develop a foundational knowledge of the topic, which you can use to direct your search for more reliable or relevant literature.

3. Keywords & Search Terms

Similarly to #2, this method of using Wikipedia collects a handful of important words, names, or even dates that you can use to narrow down your research or literature search. Returning to the Wikipedia page for  Estrildidae :

As you can see, the yellow highlighted terms are just a few potentially valuable keywords for learning more about these birds. If I were to go to the ACPHS library website and search the Discovery platform, in addition to searching for estrildidae on its own, if I wanted to know more about the discovery of these birds I could search for "Charles Lucien Bonaparte"; if I wanted to know more about specifically the locations of these birds I could search "estrildidae AND Australia OR New Guinea," for example; if I wanted to know about the specific species, family, class, or other scientific classification, I could use the other highlighted terms to do so.

When it comes to looking for keyword, the blue text often points to related terms that might be valuable in searching, while the headings in the Table of Contents can suggest subtopics that could help narrow down your research.

So remember, while Wikipedia cannot serve as a source in and of itself because it does not meet academic standards, it can be an excellent place to begin the research process, by providing potential sources and information you can use to develop your research question and find literature that will be most relevant to your needs.

Find Books & Articles on Your Topic

• Use Discovery
• Article Databases
• Interlibrary Loan

Enter a search term here

Many different databases contain articles, reports and other documents concerned with racism in health and healthcare. Depending on the focus and context of your interest, check out these useful library databases below.

• PubMed PubMed provides access to MEDLINE®, the database of indexed citations and abstracts to medical, nursing, dental, veterinary, health care, and preclinical sciences journal articles.
• ProQuest Social Science Database Disciplines covered include anthropology, communication, criminology, economics, education, political science, psychology, social work, and sociology.
• ProQuest Nursing & Allied Health Database Covers the fields of nursing and allied health, physical and occupational therapy, cytology, histology, physiology, anatomy, gerontology, and more.
• ProQuest Research Library Covers a broad range of subjects including arts, business, education, general interest, health, humanities, international, law, military, multicultural, psychology, sciences, social sciences, and women's interests.
• Gale Academic OneFile Peer-reviewed, full-text articles from the world's leading journals and reference sources. Extensive coverage of the sciences, technology, medicine, the arts, theology, literature and other subjects

The purpose of interlibrary loan (ILL) is to provide the ACPHS community with needed material that is unavailable in our library.  To take advantage of this service you will need to register for an ILLiad account.   ILLiad is an online system that allows you to initiate and track your requests to borrow books and receive articles from other libraries.

How do I register for an ILLiad account? Visit the  Libraries' Homepage . Click the Services tab, choose Interlibrary Loan, and click on Log in to ILLiad. Use your ACPHS network username and password (the one used for Canvas) to logon and start placing requests.

Searching the Web

The ACPHS library should always be your first stop in the research process, and likely will be your last; it contains the greatest number of accessible, scholarly resources that you'll likely find. However, this doesn't mean that Google cannot be used to find valuable sources.

In general, web browsers like Google, Bing, and Yahoo pull results by  popularity  as opposed to relevance or accuracy. This means that the first results you see on one of these searches will include the sites most people have clicked on, regardless of the quality of the site's information. In addition, some companies pay for their web pages to show up at the top of the search results, adding an additional layer of potential bias or conflicts of interest:

Google (or any other search engine) is best used for the following types of resources:

• General background information and common knowledge
• News stories
• Firsthand accounts that reflect public opinion (such as editorials, blog posts, social media, etc.)
• Government-, corporate-, or organization-owned web pages

While these types of sources are not likely to be included in a literature review, other research projects may benefit from these categories of resources.

The most important thing to remember when using Google or another search engine is that the results will not necessarily be current, accurate, unbiased, or relevant. It will be more challenging to evaluate these sources than ones pulled from the ACPHS library, because the library selects specifically for materials useful in academic study.

When looking for sources for a literature review, there is another way to use Google in particular for appropriate resources: Google Scholar .

This search engine works similarly to Google, but exclusively weeds out non-academic resources. It is similar to using the ACPHS Discovery , in that a search using Google Scholar will also provide studies and reports that might be useful for your literature review. Here is an example of a Google Scholar results page:

As you can see, there are some filters on the left-hand side of the screen, though Google Scholar does not allow for the same level of refinement as Discovery does. You can see the articles and their sources, authors, and publication year, as well as how many scholars have cited them since publication. (This last tool can be a helpful way to find even more current research, or perhaps even a literature review you could use in your own.)

The one significant downside of Google Scholar is that you do not automatically have access to the resources found in the search results. With Discovery, every resource is either available directly through the ACPHS library or through an interlibrary loan request, but Google Scholar will pull up results regardless of whether you have free access or not. If you find an article that you like which the ACPHS library does not have access to, you can always submit an ILL request , but if it is not within our library network, we may not be able to provide it to you.

Overall, Google Scholar is an excellent collection of resources that, as with all online searching options, has both positives and negatives. Determining which type of search method to use depends on your assignment, topic, and other research needs.

• Using Google for Academic Research by the UC Merced Library

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• Last Updated: Apr 12, 2024 10:37 AM
• URL: https://libraryservices.acphs.edu/lit_review

Writing a Literature Review: Home

      A literature review is a guide to the published information on a topic. While a literature review summarizes each author’s ideas and contributions, it is not just an alphabetical or numbered list. Sources are usually grouped into subtopics or ideas important to the topic. For example, a review of the literature on crop circles might be divided into specific geographic areas or it might represent the skeptic’s viewpoint as well as the believer’s.

     Here is an excerpt from The Writing Center at UNC-Chapel Hill:

A literature review discusses published information in a particular subject area, and sometimes information in a particular subject area within a certain time period.

A literature review can be just a simple summary of the sources, but it usually has an organizational pattern and combines both summary and synthesis. A summary is a recap of the important information of the source, but a synthesis is a re-organization, or a reshuffling, of that information. It might give a new interpretation of old material or combine new with old interpretations. Or it might trace the intellectual progression of the field, including major debates. And depending on the situation, the literature review may evaluate the sources and advise the reader on the most pertinent or relevant.

     Literature reviews are very valuable to researchers who need an overview of what’s been written about a topic, but they do not count as scholarly journal articles when you are collecting sources for a term paper.

WRITING A LITERATURE REVIEW: CHOOSING A TOPIC

      I f you have to write a literature review, you need to take care that the topic you choose is neither too broad or too narrow. You could spend the rest of your life doing a literature review on war whereas a literature review on women in the Gulf War might be adequately addressed in several pages. Conversely, you might choose a topic and discover that almost nothing has been written about it. Consult with a reference librarian or your professor to be certain you’ve chosen wisely.

WRITING A LITERATURE REVIEW: SELECTION CRITERIA

      N ext, decide what types of literature will be included. Will you use books, journal articles, magazine articles, newspaper articles, web sites, and/or something else? How old should the material be? How many items will be included?

WRITING A LITERATURE REVIEW: THESIS STATEMENT

      T he thesis statement for a literature review argues neither for or against a particular position but for a particular perspective on the literature. Continuing on with our example of crop circles, a possible thesis statement might be:

The phenomenon known as “crop circles” has become worthy of investigation by the scientific community.

The hallmarks of scientific literature on hoaxes are revealed in the literature on the phenomenon known as “crop circles.”

SAMPLE LITERATURE REVIEWS

• Enrichment for Captive TIgers(Panthera tigris): Current Knowledge and Future Directions

Notice how the literature reviews below address different, specific aspects of oil spills:

• Offshore Oil Spill Response Practices and Emerging Challenges
• Oil Spills and Their Impacts on Sand Beach Invertebrate Communities: A Literature Review
• Oil Spill Detection by Satellite Remote Sensing

A Crop Circle

• What is "The Literature"?

FURTHER ASSISTANCE

      T here is a lot more to writing a literature review than can be easily covered in this guide. Get all the details you can from your professor. Find a literature review to use as a model. Consult one of these books or Web sites:

• Preparing Literature Reviews : Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches by M. Ling Pan.
• Writing Literature Reviews : a Guide for Students of the Social and Behavioral Sciences by Jose L. Galvan.
• The UNC Writing Center: Literature Reviews
• The Literature Review: A Few Tips On Conducting It
• Social Work Literature Review Guidelines

• Last Updated: Nov 23, 2020 12:18 PM
• URL: https://libguides.csusb.edu/literaturereview

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Introduction

Systematic Review Services and Resources

Need help with a review? Health Sciences Library experts and resources are here for UVA faculty, staff, and students for all types of reviews , from critical reviews, to mapping reviews, to scoping studies, and more. Both the Cochrane Collaboration and the Institute of Medicine recommend authors of systematic reviews work with librarians to identify the best possible evidence. Let us help you prepare your review with the best methods possible.

We fully support UVA faculty, students, and staff in their roles related to health and biomedical research and education, and in patient care. However, due to capacity and licensing limitations, we are unable to provide literature search services for professional society committee members and other professional organizational commitments of faculty. We applaud those professional medical societies that employ librarians to support these types of activities.

Librarian Participation Models We offer two models for librarian participation in systematic and other review types, such as scoping and narrative reviews. Services below are generally limited to UVA Health faculty, staff, and students.

1. Consult model:  A librarian will discuss your topic, review any terms you have or show you how to develop search terms, advise on database selection, and give you an overview of the review process. Review teams then run their own searches.

2. Collaboration model:   A librarian is part of the review team and due to their contributions, co-authorship is expected.  Librarian contributions may include the following:

• formulate research question
• investigate whether there is already a published systematic or scoping review on your topic or whether there is one currently under development
• assist with protocol registration
• recommend databases to be searched, and run the search
• de-duplicate search results
• advise on (or manage) choice of screening software/platforms
• manage PDF availability for full-text screening
• complete the PRISMA flow diagram 
• write the search methods section of the review manuscript and provide appropriate documentation (e.g. full search strategy for one database)
• approve the final manuscript

To request a librarian to participate in your systematic review, please fill out our Systematic Review Request form.  If you have questions about our services, please use our Ask Us form

Review Resources

Working on a systematic or other type of review? These guides and tools may be useful:

What Type of Review?

To determine what review is most appropriate for your question, timeframe, or resources, consult this  decision tree graphic  from U Maryland Health Sciences and Human Services Library

Also consult  Systematic Reviews & Other Review Types  from Temple University Libraries

• Scroll down to see the process organized into steps/stages
• Helpful links to Critical Appraisal Checklists (i.e. CASP) and Grading the strength of evidence (i.e. GRADE)

A) The Process as a Whole

At-a-Glance

Systematic Reviews: A simplified, step-by-step process  (UNC Health Sciences Library)

Think about where you would want to publish your review. What types of reviews does that journal publish? Check out the journal's website or use PubMed's Citation Matcher to search on your journal title, limiting your results to review to see what's been done.

In-Depth Guidance

Useful guides and articles on the basics (and more!) of systematic reviews

New to reviews? This multi-page guide does an excellent job detailing the many steps involved in a systematic review.

Systematic Reviews - Duke University Medical Library

Excellent overview; includes a helpful grid of Types of Reviews  and a helpful

Evidence Synthesis & Literature Reviews - Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library

Includes tutorials

A Guide to Evidence Synthesis: Steps in a Systematic Review - Cornell University Library

Text and videos provide an overview of the steps in a review with links to useful tools

Systematic Reviews - U Kentucky Libraries

Well-designed layout to lead you through the needed steps

Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis — Open & Free Self-paced, asynchronous full tutorial with exercises (developed for the Campbell Collaboration (social sciences).

"Analysing data and undertaking meta-analyses"  (Cochrane Handbook, Ch. 10) covers the principles and various methods for conducting meta-analyses for the main types of data encountered. 

Review Workflow

Guidelines and tools are available to assist you with the planning and workflow of your review.

• PROSPERO  is a prospective registry of health-related systematic reviews
• Scoping review protocol  from JBI Evidence Synthesis 
• PRISMA  provides a checklist, flow diagram, and other guidance for reporting
• AHRQ Methods Guide for Effectiveness and Comparative Effectiveness Reviews

B) Specific Stages

Managing References

Collecting your citations is an important step in any review. Software and web-based tools assist with this process. All of the following tools have features to help with both formatting your in-text citations and your bibliography.

• EndNote is a powerful software tool for Windows or Mac. EndNote 20 is available at the discounted price of $249.95 ($149.95 for students) via Cavalier Computers . It helps with collecting references as well as PDFs.
• Zotero is a free product and is especially feature-rich in terms of capturing citation information for web pages and other document types. 

Want help comparing these tools? See our Citation Managers guide.

  Screening and Study Selection

Much of the work in a review involves managing the process of title and abstract screening and study selection. Fortunately there are tools that facilitate this process with features to import citations, screen titles and abstracts, etc.

• Rayyan is a free, Web-based tool
• Covidence  is fee-based, but allows one free trial (with two reviewers and up to 500 citations)
• DistillerSR  is very feature-rich. It's fee-based (and pricey), but does provide a free student version .

Want to learn more? Check out these resources:

• Inclusion and Exclusion criteria  - University of Melbourne Libraries
• SR Toolbox - look up a tool to learn more, or, search by features you want the tool to support (e.g. data extraction).
• Goldet G, Howick J. Understanding GRADE: an introduction . J Evid Based Med. 2013 Feb;6(1):50-54. doi: 10.1111/jebm.12018. PMID: 23557528.

Data Extraction

• Consider consulting similar published reviews and their completed data tables
• Data Extraction - UNC Health Sciences Library
• Sample form for a small-scale review (this example is interventions to increase ED throughput
• Cochrane Data Collection form for RCTs

Quality Assessment

• Quality Assessment - UNC Health Sciences Library
• Spreadsheet of Quality Assessment or Risk of Bias tool choices  (Duke Medical Library)

Tools for Creating Risk of Bias Figures

Web app designed for visualizing risk-of-bias assessments to create “traffic light” plots 

• Last Updated: Jan 9, 2024 11:53 AM
• URL: https://guides.hsl.virginia.edu/sys-review-resources

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The Little review : literature, drama, music, art

Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library > The Little review : literature, drama, music, art

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