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• What is a Literature Review? | Guide, Template, & Examples

What is a Literature Review? | Guide, Template, & Examples

Published on 22 February 2022 by Shona McCombes . Revised on 7 June 2022.

What is a literature review? A literature review is a survey of scholarly sources on a specific topic. It provides an overview of current knowledge, allowing you to identify relevant theories, methods, and gaps in the existing research.

There are five key steps to writing a literature review:

• Search for relevant literature
• Evaluate sources
• Identify themes, debates and gaps
• Outline the structure
• Write your literature review

A good literature review doesn’t just summarise sources – it analyses, synthesises, and critically evaluates to give a clear picture of the state of knowledge on the subject.

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Table of contents

Why write a literature review, examples of literature reviews, step 1: search for relevant literature, step 2: evaluate and select sources, step 3: identify themes, debates and gaps, step 4: outline your literature review’s structure, step 5: write your literature review, frequently asked questions about literature reviews, introduction.

• Quick Run-through
• Step 1 & 2

When you write a dissertation or thesis, you will have to conduct a literature review to situate your research within existing knowledge. The literature review gives you a chance to:

• Demonstrate your familiarity with the topic and scholarly context
• Develop a theoretical framework and methodology for your research
• Position yourself in relation to other researchers and theorists
• Show how your dissertation addresses a gap or contributes to a debate

You might also have to write a literature review as a stand-alone assignment. In this case, the purpose is to evaluate the current state of research and demonstrate your knowledge of scholarly debates around a topic.

The content will look slightly different in each case, but the process of conducting a literature review follows the same steps. We’ve written a step-by-step guide that you can follow below.

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Writing literature reviews can be quite challenging! A good starting point could be to look at some examples, depending on what kind of literature review you’d like to write.

• Example literature review #1: “Why Do People Migrate? A Review of the Theoretical Literature” ( Theoretical literature review about the development of economic migration theory from the 1950s to today.)
• Example literature review #2: “Literature review as a research methodology: An overview and guidelines” ( Methodological literature review about interdisciplinary knowledge acquisition and production.)
• Example literature review #3: “The Use of Technology in English Language Learning: A Literature Review” ( Thematic literature review about the effects of technology on language acquisition.)
• Example literature review #4: “Learners’ Listening Comprehension Difficulties in English Language Learning: A Literature Review” ( Chronological literature review about how the concept of listening skills has changed over time.)

You can also check out our templates with literature review examples and sample outlines at the links below.

Download Word doc Download Google doc

Before you begin searching for literature, you need a clearly defined topic .

If you are writing the literature review section of a dissertation or research paper, you will search for literature related to your research objectives and questions .

If you are writing a literature review as a stand-alone assignment, you will have to choose a focus and develop a central question to direct your search. Unlike a dissertation research question, this question has to be answerable without collecting original data. You should be able to answer it based only on a review of existing publications.

Make a list of keywords

Start by creating a list of keywords related to your research topic. Include each of the key concepts or variables you’re interested in, and list any synonyms and related terms. You can add to this list if you discover new keywords in the process of your literature search.

• Social media, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, TikTok
• Body image, self-perception, self-esteem, mental health
• Generation Z, teenagers, adolescents, youth

Search for relevant sources

Use your keywords to begin searching for sources. Some databases to search for journals and articles include:

• Your university’s library catalogue
• Google Scholar
• Project Muse (humanities and social sciences)
• Medline (life sciences and biomedicine)
• EconLit (economics)
• Inspec (physics, engineering and computer science)

You can use boolean operators to help narrow down your search:

Read the abstract to find out whether an article is relevant to your question. When you find a useful book or article, you can check the bibliography to find other relevant sources.

To identify the most important publications on your topic, take note of recurring citations. If the same authors, books or articles keep appearing in your reading, make sure to seek them out.

You probably won’t be able to read absolutely everything that has been written on the topic – you’ll have to evaluate which sources are most relevant to your questions.

For each publication, ask yourself:

• What question or problem is the author addressing?
• What are the key concepts and how are they defined?
• What are the key theories, models and methods? Does the research use established frameworks or take an innovative approach?
• What are the results and conclusions of the study?
• How does the publication relate to other literature in the field? Does it confirm, add to, or challenge established knowledge?
• How does the publication contribute to your understanding of the topic? What are its key insights and arguments?
• What are the strengths and weaknesses of the research?

Make sure the sources you use are credible, and make sure you read any landmark studies and major theories in your field of research.

You can find out how many times an article has been cited on Google Scholar – a high citation count means the article has been influential in the field, and should certainly be included in your literature review.

The scope of your review will depend on your topic and discipline: in the sciences you usually only review recent literature, but in the humanities you might take a long historical perspective (for example, to trace how a concept has changed in meaning over time).

Remember that you can use our template to summarise and evaluate sources you’re thinking about using!

Take notes and cite your sources

As you read, you should also begin the writing process. Take notes that you can later incorporate into the text of your literature review.

It’s important to keep track of your sources with references to avoid plagiarism . It can be helpful to make an annotated bibliography, where you compile full reference information and write a paragraph of summary and analysis for each source. This helps you remember what you read and saves time later in the process.

You can use our free APA Reference Generator for quick, correct, consistent citations.

To begin organising your literature review’s argument and structure, you need to understand the connections and relationships between the sources you’ve read. Based on your reading and notes, you can look for:

• Trends and patterns (in theory, method or results): do certain approaches become more or less popular over time?
• Themes: what questions or concepts recur across the literature?
• Debates, conflicts and contradictions: where do sources disagree?
• Pivotal publications: are there any influential theories or studies that changed the direction of the field?
• Gaps: what is missing from the literature? Are there weaknesses that need to be addressed?

This step will help you work out the structure of your literature review and (if applicable) show how your own research will contribute to existing knowledge.

• Most research has focused on young women.
• There is an increasing interest in the visual aspects of social media.
• But there is still a lack of robust research on highly-visual platforms like Instagram and Snapchat – this is a gap that you could address in your own research.

There are various approaches to organising the body of a literature review. You should have a rough idea of your strategy before you start writing.

Depending on the length of your literature review, you can combine several of these strategies (for example, your overall structure might be thematic, but each theme is discussed chronologically).

Chronological

The simplest approach is to trace the development of the topic over time. However, if you choose this strategy, be careful to avoid simply listing and summarising sources in order.

Try to analyse patterns, turning points and key debates that have shaped the direction of the field. Give your interpretation of how and why certain developments occurred.

If you have found some recurring central themes, you can organise your literature review into subsections that address different aspects of the topic.

For example, if you are reviewing literature about inequalities in migrant health outcomes, key themes might include healthcare policy, language barriers, cultural attitudes, legal status, and economic access.

Methodological

If you draw your sources from different disciplines or fields that use a variety of research methods , you might want to compare the results and conclusions that emerge from different approaches. For example:

• Look at what results have emerged in qualitative versus quantitative research
• Discuss how the topic has been approached by empirical versus theoretical scholarship
• Divide the literature into sociological, historical, and cultural sources

Theoretical

A literature review is often the foundation for a theoretical framework . You can use it to discuss various theories, models, and definitions of key concepts.

You might argue for the relevance of a specific theoretical approach, or combine various theoretical concepts to create a framework for your research.

Like any other academic text, your literature review should have an introduction , a main body, and a conclusion . What you include in each depends on the objective of your literature review.

The introduction should clearly establish the focus and purpose of the literature review.

If you are writing the literature review as part of your dissertation or thesis, reiterate your central problem or research question and give a brief summary of the scholarly context. You can emphasise the timeliness of the topic (“many recent studies have focused on the problem of x”) or highlight a gap in the literature (“while there has been much research on x, few researchers have taken y into consideration”).

Depending on the length of your literature review, you might want to divide the body into subsections. You can use a subheading for each theme, time period, or methodological approach.

As you write, make sure to follow these tips:

• Summarise and synthesise: give an overview of the main points of each source and combine them into a coherent whole.
• Analyse and interpret: don’t just paraphrase other researchers – add your own interpretations, discussing the significance of findings in relation to the literature as a whole.
• Critically evaluate: mention the strengths and weaknesses of your sources.
• Write in well-structured paragraphs: use transitions and topic sentences to draw connections, comparisons and contrasts.

In the conclusion, you should summarise the key findings you have taken from the literature and emphasise their significance.

If the literature review is part of your dissertation or thesis, reiterate how your research addresses gaps and contributes new knowledge, or discuss how you have drawn on existing theories and methods to build a framework for your research. This can lead directly into your methodology section.

A literature review is a survey of scholarly sources (such as books, journal articles, and theses) related to a specific topic or research question .

It is often written as part of a dissertation , thesis, research paper , or proposal .

There are several reasons to conduct a literature review at the beginning of a research project:

• To familiarise yourself with the current state of knowledge on your topic
• To ensure that you’re not just repeating what others have already done
• To identify gaps in knowledge and unresolved problems that your research can address
• To develop your theoretical framework and methodology
• To provide an overview of the key findings and debates on the topic

Writing the literature review shows your reader how your work relates to existing research and what new insights it will contribute.

The literature review usually comes near the beginning of your  dissertation . After the introduction , it grounds your research in a scholarly field and leads directly to your theoretical framework or methodology .

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Library Guides

Literature reviews: structure.

• Criticality

Structure your Work

Uncertain about how to structure your literature review? Have a look at this revelatory video by Dr Jodie Salter and the University of Guelph. 

Video Link:  Writing the Literature Review: A Banquet Hall Analogy  

Structure of a literature review

A literature review should have an introduction, main body and a conclusion.

As shown in the video, above, the body should NOT be organised author by author (for that, there are annotated bibliographies ). Instead, it should be organised by topic (normally, from general background to specific aspects of the subject your dissertation is dealing with). Some paragraphs can be organised chronologically (for example outlining the development of an idea throughout time), by method, by sector, or other criteria.  

Introduction 

This should be a paragraph that can include some of the following: 

Outlining the scope of your literature review – sources, topics to be discussed / the aims of your review. 

Where/how does your topic fit into the wider subject area. 

Why the topic is important- is it an area of current interest/significance? 

Highlight the relevant issues or debates that have characterised your field of research. 

Has the topic been widely researched? Or not? 

Signposting for the reader, explaining the organisation / sequence of topics covered in the review. 

Provide strong sentences at beginnings of paragraphs: every paragraph shall deal with a topic or make a point.  

Signpost, showing the direction of your writing, and indicating your critical take on the sources you present.  

Use you own voice to comment on and evaluate the literature. 

Identify gaps in the literature.  

Write "so what" summary sentences throughout the review to help the reader understand how the sections of your review are relevant to your research. 

Use language to show confidence or caution, as appropriate: e.g. There is clearly a link... OR This suggests a possible link... 

Avoid "he/she said...": always name the authors. Vary the reporting words. See the guide on  Academic Voice and Language  for more guidance on logic, signposting, reporting words etc.  

Conclusion 

State how your literature review has met the review aim(s) outlined in the introduction. 

Summarise and synthesise the main issues/themes that the literature review has presented in relation to your topic area and research questions. 

If the literature review is part of a dissertation, underline the gaps identified in the literature. This provides a rationale for your chosen dissertation topic. 

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• Last Updated: Nov 18, 2023 10:56 PM
• URL: https://libguides.westminster.ac.uk/literature-reviews

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• Schools & departments

Literature review

A general guide on how to conduct and write a literature review.

Please check course or programme information and materials provided by teaching staff, including your project supervisor, for subject-specific guidance.

What is a literature review?

A literature review is a piece of academic writing demonstrating knowledge and understanding of the academic literature on a specific topic placed in context.  A literature review also includes a critical evaluation of the material; this is why it is called a literature review rather than a literature report. It is a process of reviewing the literature, as well as a form of writing.

To illustrate the difference between reporting and reviewing, think about television or film review articles.  These articles include content such as a brief synopsis or the key points of the film or programme plus the critic’s own evaluation.  Similarly the two main objectives of a literature review are firstly the content covering existing research, theories and evidence, and secondly your own critical evaluation and discussion of this content. 

Usually a literature review forms a section or part of a dissertation, research project or long essay.  However, it can also be set and assessed as a standalone piece of work.

What is the purpose of a literature review?

…your task is to build an argument, not a library. Rudestam, K.E. and Newton, R.R. (1992) Surviving your dissertation: A comprehensive guide to content and process. California: Sage, p49.

In a larger piece of written work, such as a dissertation or project, a literature review is usually one of the first tasks carried out after deciding on a topic.  Reading combined with critical analysis can help to refine a topic and frame research questions.  Conducting a literature review establishes your familiarity with and understanding of current research in a particular field before carrying out a new investigation. After doing a literature review, you should know what research has already been done and be able to identify what is unknown within your topic.

When doing and writing a literature review, it is good practice to:

• summarise and analyse previous research and theories;
• identify areas of controversy and contested claims;
• highlight any gaps that may exist in research to date.

Conducting a literature review

Focusing on different aspects of your literature review can be useful to help plan, develop, refine and write it.  You can use and adapt the prompt questions in our worksheet below at different points in the process of researching and writing your review.  These are suggestions to get you thinking and writing.

Developing and refining your literature review (pdf)

Developing and refining your literature review (Word)

Developing and refining your literature review (Word rtf)

Writing a literature review has a lot in common with other assignment tasks.  There is advice on our other pages about thinking critically, reading strategies and academic writing.  Our literature review top tips suggest some specific things you can do to help you submit a successful review.

Literature review top tips (pdf)

Literature review top tips (Word rtf)

Our reading page includes strategies and advice on using books and articles and a notes record sheet grid you can use.

Reading at university

The Academic writing page suggests ways to organise and structure information from a range of sources and how you can develop your argument as you read and write.

Academic writing

The Critical thinking page has advice on how to be a more critical researcher and a form you can use to help you think and break down the stages of developing your argument.

Critical thinking

As with other forms of academic writing, your literature review needs to demonstrate good academic practice by following the Code of Student Conduct and acknowledging the work of others through citing and referencing your sources.  

Good academic practice

As with any writing task, you will need to review, edit and rewrite sections of your literature review.  The Editing and proofreading page includes tips on how to do this and strategies for standing back and thinking about your structure and checking the flow of your argument.

Editing and proofreading

Guidance on literature searching from the University Library

The Academic Support Librarians have developed LibSmart I and II, Learn courses to help you develop and enhance your digital research skills and capabilities; from getting started with the Library to managing data for your dissertation.

Searching using the library’s DiscoverEd tool: DiscoverEd

Finding resources in your subject: Subject guides

The Academic Support Librarians also provide one-to-one appointments to help you develop your research strategies.

1 to 1 support for literature searching and systematic reviews

Advice to help you optimise use of Google Scholar, Google Books and Google for your research and study: Using Google

Managing and curating your references

A referencing management tool can help you to collect and organise and your source material to produce a bibliography or reference list. 

Referencing and reference management

Information Services provide access to Cite them right online which is a guide to the main referencing systems and tells you how to reference just about any source (EASE log-in may be required).

Cite them right

Published study guides

There are a number of scholarship skills books and guides available which can help with writing a literature review.  Our Resource List of study skills guides includes sections on Referencing, Dissertation and project writing and Literature reviews.

Study skills guides

This article was published on 2024-02-26

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Literature reviews

Writing a literature review.

The following guide has been created for you by the  Student Learning Advisory Service . For more detailed guidance and to speak to one of our advisers, please book an  appointment  or join one of our  workshops . Alternatively, have a look at our  SkillBuilder  skills videos.   

Preparing a literature review involves:

• Searching for reliable, accurate and up-to-date material on a topic or subject
• Reading and summarising the key points from this literature
• Synthesising these key ideas, theories and concepts into a summary of what is known
• Discussing and evaluating these ideas, theories and concepts
• Identifying particular areas of debate or controversy
• Preparing the ground for the application of these ideas to new research

Finding and choosing material

Ensure you are clear on what you are looking for. ask yourself:.

• What is the specific question, topic or focus of my assignment?
• What kind of material do I need (e.g. theory, policy, empirical data)?
• What type of literature is available (e.g. journals, books, government documents)?

What kind of literature is particularly authoritative in this academic discipline (e.g. psychology, sociology, pharmacy)?

How much do you need?

This will depend on the length of the dissertation, the nature of the subject, and the level of study (undergraduate, Masters, PhD). As a very rough rule of thumb – you may choose 8-10 significant pieces (books and/or articles) for an 8,000 word dissertation, up to 20 major pieces of work for 12-15,000 words, and so on. Bear in mind that if your dissertation is based mainly around an interaction with existing scholarship you will need a longer literature review than if it is there as a prelude to new empirical research. Use your judgement or ask your supervisor for guidance.

Where to find suitable material

Your literature review should include a balance between substantial academic books, journal articles and other scholarly publications. All these sources should be as up-to-date as possible, with the exception of ‘classic texts’ such as major works written by leading scholars setting out formative ideas and theories central to your subject. There are several ways to locate suitable material:

Module bibliography: for undergraduate dissertations, look first at the bibliography provided with the module documentation. Choose one or two likely looking books or articles and then scan through the bibliographies provided by these authors. Skim read some of this material looking for clues: can you use these leads to identify key theories and authors or track down other appropriate material?

Library catalogue search engine: enter a few key words to capture a range of items, but avoid over-generalisations; if you type in something as broad as ‘social theory’ you are likely to get several thousand results. Be more specific: for example, ‘Heidegger, existentialism’. Ideally, you should narrow the field to obtain just a few dozen results. Skim through these quickly to identity texts which are most likely to contribute to your study.

Library bookshelves: browse the library shelves in the relevant subject area and examine the books that catch your eye. Check the contents and index pages, or skim through the introductions (or abstracts, in the case of journal articles) to see if they contain relevant material, and replace them if not. Don’t be afraid to ask one of the subject librarians for further help. Your supervisor may also be able to point you in the direction of some of the important literature , but remember this is your literature search, not theirs.

Online: for recent journal articles you will almost certainly need to use one of the online search engines. These can be found on the ‘Indexing Services’ button on the Templeman Library website. Kent students based at Medway still need to use the Templeman pages to access online journals, although you can get to these pages through the Drill Hall Library catalogue. Take a look as well at the Subject Guides on both the Templeman and DHL websites.

Check that you have made the right selection by asking:

• Has my search been wide enough to ensure that I have identified all the relevant material, but narrow enough to exclude irrelevant material?
• Is there a good enough sample of literature for the level (PhD, Masters, undergraduate) of my dissertation or thesis?
• Have I considered as many alternative points of view as possible?
• Will the reader find my literature review relevant and useful?

Assessing the literature

Read the material you have chosen carefully, considering the following:

• The key point discussed by the author: is this clearly defined
• What evidence has the author produced to support this central idea?
• How convincing are the reasons given for the author’s point of view?
• Could the evidence be interpreted in other ways?
• What is the author's research method (e.g. qualitative, quantitative, experimental, etc.)?
• What is the author's theoretical framework (e.g. psychological, developmental, feminist)?
• What is the relationship assumed by the author between theory and practice?
• Has the author critically evaluated the other literature in the field?
• Does the author include literature opposing their point of view?
• Is the research data based on a reliable method and accurate information?
• Can you ‘deconstruct’ the argument – identify the gaps or jumps in the logic?
• What are the strengths and limitations of this study?
• What does this book or article contribute to the field or topic?
• What does this book or article contribute to my own topic or thesis?

As you note down the key content of each book or journal article (together with the reference details of each source) record your responses to these questions. You will then be able to summarise each piece of material from two perspectives:     

Content: a brief description of the content of the book or article. Remember, an author will often make just one key point; so, what is the point they are making, and how does it relate to your own research project or assignment?

Critical analysis: an assessment of the relative strengths and weaknesses of the evidence used, and the arguments presented. Has anything conveniently been left out or skated over? Is there a counter-argument, and has the author dealt with this adequately? Can the evidence presented be interpreted another way? Does the author demonstrate any obvious bias which could affect their reliability? Overall, based on the above analysis of the author’s work, how do you evaluate its contribution to the scholarly understanding and knowledge surrounding the topic?    

Structuring the literature review

In a PhD thesis, the literature review typically comprises one chapter (perhaps 8-10,000 words), for a Masters dissertation it may be around 2-3,000 words, and for an undergraduate dissertation it may be no more than 2,000 words. In each case the word count can vary depending on a range of factors and it is always best, if in doubt, to ask your supervisor.

The overall structure of the section or chapter should be like any other: it should have a beginning, middle and end. You will need to guide the reader through the literature review, outlining the strategy you have adopted for selecting the books or articles, presenting the topic theme for the review, then using most of the word limit to analyse the chosen books or articles thoroughly before pulling everything together briefly in the conclusion.

Some people prefer a less linear approach. Instead of simply working through a list of 8-20 items on your book review list, you might want to try a thematic approach, grouping key ideas, facts, concepts or approaches together and then bouncing the ideas off each other. This is a slightly more creative (and interesting) way of producing the review, but a little more risky as it is harder to establish coherence and logical sequencing.

Whichever approach you adopt, make sure everything flows smoothly – that one idea or book leads neatly to the next. Take your reader effortlessly through a sequence of thought that is clear, accurate, precise and interesting. 

Writing up your literature review

As with essays generally, only attempt to write up the literature review when you have completed all the reading and note-taking, and carefully planned its content and structure. Find an appropriate way of introducing the review, then guide the reader through the material clearly and directly, bearing in mind the following:

• Be selective in the number of points you draw out from each piece of literature; remember that one of your objectives is to demonstrate that you can use your judgement to identify what is central and what is secondary.
• Summarise and synthesise – use your own words to sum up what you think is important or controversial about the book or article.
• Never claim more than the evidence will support. Too many dissertations and theses are let down by sweeping generalisations. Be tentative and careful in the way you interpret the evidence.
• Keep your own voice – you are entitled to your own point of view provided it is based on evidence and clear argument.
• At the same time, aim to project an objective and tentative tone by using the 3rd person, (for example, ‘this tends to suggest’, ‘it could be argued’ and so on).
• Even with a literature review you should avoid using too many, or overlong, quotes. Summarise material in your own words as much as possible. Save the quotes for ‘punch-lines’ to drive a particular point home.
• Revise, revise, revise: refine and edit the draft as much as you can. Check for fluency, structure, evidence, criticality and referencing, and don’t forget the basics of good grammar, punctuation and spelling.

Writing the Dissertation - Guides for Success: The Literature Review

• Writing the Dissertation Homepage
• Overview and Planning
• The Literature Review
• The Methodology
• The Results and Discussion
• The Conclusion
• The Abstract
• Getting Started
• Research Gap
• What to Avoid

Overview of writing the literature review

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. This, in turn, helps you to clearly and persuasively demonstrate how your own research will address one or more of these gaps.

Disciplinary differences

Please note: this guide is not specific to any one discipline. The literature review can vary depending on the nature of the research and the expectations of the school or department. Please adapt the following advice to meet the demands of your dissertation and the expectations of your school or department. Consult your supervisor for further guidance; you can also check out  Writing Across Subjects guide .

Guide contents

As part of the Writing the Dissertation series, this guide covers the most common expectations for the literature review chapter, giving you the necessary knowledge, tips and guidance needed to impress your markers!  The sections are organised as follows:

• Getting Started  - Defines the literature review and presents a table to help you plan.
• Process -  Explores choosing a topic, searching for sources and evaluating what you find.
• Structure  - Presents key principles to consider in terms of structure, with examples to illustrate the concepts.
• Research gap - Clarifies what is meant by 'gap' and gives examples of common types of gaps.
• What to Avoid  - Covers a few frequent mistakes you'll want to...avoid!
• FAQs  - Answers to common questions about research gaps, literature availability and more.
• Checklist  - Includes a summary of key points and a self-evaluation checklist.

Training and tools

• The Academic Skills team has recorded a Writing the Dissertation workshop series to help you with each section of a standard dissertation, including a video on writing the literature review .
• Check out the library's online Literature Review: Research Methods training.
• Our literature reviews summary guide provides links to further information and videos.
• The dissertation planner tool can help you think through the timeline for planning, research, drafting and editing.
• iSolutions offers training and a Word template to help you digitally format and structure your dissertation.

What is the literature review?

The literature review of a dissertation gives a clear, critical overview of a specific area of research. Our main Writing the Dissertation - Overview and Planning guide explains how you can refine your dissertation topic  and begin your initial research; the next tab of this guide, 'Process', expands on those ideas. In summary, the process of conducting a literature review usually involves the following:

• Conducting a series of strategic searches to identify the key texts within that topic.
• Identifying the main argument in each source, the relevant themes and issues presented and how they relate to each other.
• Critically evaluating your chosen sources and determining their strengths, weaknesses, relevance and value to your research along with their overall contribution to the broader research field.
• Identifying any gaps or flaws in the literature which your research can address.

Literature review as both process and product

Writers should keep in mind that the phrase 'literature review' refers to two related, but distinct, things:

• 'Literature review' refers, first, to the  active process  of discovering and assessing relevant literature.
• 'Literature review' refers, second, to the  written product  that emerges from the above process.

This distinction is vital to note because  every  dissertation requires the writer to engage with and consider existing literature (i.e., to undertake the active  process ). Research doesn't exist in a void, and it's crucial to consider how our work builds from or develops existing foundations of thought or discovery. Thus, even if your discipline doesn't require you to include a chapter titled 'Literature Review' in your submitted dissertation, you should expect to engage with the process of reviewing literature.

Why is it important to be aware of existing literature?

• You are expected to explain how your research fits in with other research in your field and, perhaps, within the wider academic community.
• You will be expected to contribute something new, or slightly different, so you need to know what has already been done.
• Assessing the existing literature on your topic helps you to identify any gaps or flaws within the research field. This, in turn, helps to stimulate new ideas, such as addressing any gaps in knowledge, or reinforcing an existing theory or argument through new and focused research.

Not all literature reviews are the same. For example, in many subject areas, you are expected to include the literature review as its own chapter in your dissertation. However, in other subjects, the dissertation structure doesn't include a dedicated literature review chapter; any literature the writer has reviewed is instead incorporated in other relevant sections such as the introduction, methodology or discussion.

For this reason, there are a number of questions you should discuss with your supervisor before starting your literature review. These questions are also great to discuss with peers in your degree programme. These are outlined in the table below (see the Word document for a copy you can save and edit):

• Dissertation literature review planning table

Literature review: the process

Conducting a literature review requires you to stay organised and bring a systematic approach to your thinking and reading. Scroll to continue reading, or click a link below to jump immediately to that section:

Choosing a topic

The first step of any research project is to select an interesting topic. From here, the research phase for your literature review helps to narrow down your focus to a particular strand of research and to a specific research question. This process of narrowing and refining your research topic is particularly important because it helps you to maintain your focus and manage your material without becoming overwhelmed by sources and ideas.

Try to choose something that hasn’t been researched to death. This way, you stand a better chance of making a novel contribution to the research field.

Conversely, you should avoid undertaking an area of research where little to no work has been done. There are two reasons for this:

• Firstly, there may be a good reason for the lack of research on a topic (e.g. is the research useful or worthwhile pursuing?).
• Secondly, some research projects, particularly practice-based ones involving primary research, can be too ambitious in terms of their scope and the availability of resources. Aim to contribute to a topic, not invent one!

Searching for sources

Researching and writing a literature review is partly about demonstrating your independent research skills. Your supervisor may have some tips relating to your discipline and research topic, but you should be proactive in finding a range of relevant sources. There are various ways of tracking down the literature relevant to your project, as outlined below.

Make use of Library Search

One thing you don’t want to do is simply type your topic into Google and see what comes up. Instead, use Library Search to search the Library’s catalogue of books, media and articles.

Online training for 'Using databases' and 'Finding information' can be found here . You can also use the Library's subject pages to discover databases and resources specific to your academic discipline.

Engage with others working in your area

As well as making use of library resources, it can be helpful to discuss your work with students or academics working in similar areas. Think about attending relevant conferences and/or workshops which can help to stimulate ideas and allows you to keep track of the most current trends in your research field.

Look at the literature your sources reference

Finding relevant literature can, at times, be a long and slightly frustrating experience. However, one good source can often make all the difference. When you find a good source that is both relevant and valuable to your research, look at the material it cites throughout and follow up any sources that are useful. Also check if your source has been cited in any more recent publications.

Think of the bibliography/references page of a good source as a series of breadcrumbs that you can follow to find even more great material.

Evaluating sources

It is very important to be selective when choosing the final sources to include in your literature review. Below are some of the key questions to ask yourself:

• If a source is tangentially interesting but hasn’t made any particular contribution to your topic, it probably shouldn’t be included in your literature review. You need to be able to demonstrate how it fits in with the other sources under consideration, and how it has helped shape the current state of the literature.
• There might be a wealth of material available on your chosen subject, but you need to make sure that the sources you use are appropriate for your assignment. The safest approach to take is to use only academic work from respected publishers. However, on occasions, you might need to deviate from traditional academic literature in order to find the information you need. In many cases, the problem is not so much the sources you use, but how you use them. Where relevant, information from newspapers, websites and even blogs are often acceptable, but you should be careful how you use that information. Do not necessarily take any information as factual. Instead be critical and interpret the material in the context of your research. Consider who the writer is and how this might influence the authority and reliability of the information presented. Consult your supervisor for more specific guidance relating to your research.
• The mere fact that something has been published does not automatically guarantee its quality, even if it comes from a reputable publisher. You will need to critique the content of the source. Has the author been thorough and consistent in their methodology? Do they present their thesis coherently? Most importantly, have they made a genuine contribution to the topic?

Keeping track of your sources

Once you have selected a source to use in your literature review, it is useful to make notes on all of its key features, including where it comes from, what it says, and what its main strengths and weaknesses are. This way you can easily re-familiarise yourself with a source without having to re-read it. Keeping an annotated bibliography is one way to do this.

Alternately, below is a table you can copy and fill out for each source (see the Word document to save an editable copy for yourself). Software such as EndNote also allows you to keep an electronic record of references and your comments on them.

• Source evaluation table

Writing your literature review

As we explored in the 'Getting Started' tab, the literature review is both a process you follow and (in most cases) a written chapter you produce. Thus, having engaged the review process, you now need to do the writing itself. Please continue reading, or click a heading below to jump immediately to that section.

Guiding principles

The structure of the final piece will depend on the discipline within which you are working as well as the nature of your particular research project. However, here are a few general pieces of advice for writing a successful literature review:

• Show the connections between your sources. Remember that your review should be more than merely a list of sources with brief descriptions under each one. You are constructing a narrative. Show clearly how each text has contributed to the current state of the literature, drawing connections between them.
• Engage critically with your sources. This means not simply describing what they say. You should be evaluating their content: do they make sound arguments? Are there any flaws in the methodology? Are there any relevant themes or issues they have failed to address? You can also compare their relative strengths and weaknesses.
• Signpost throughout to ensure your reader can follow your narrative.  Keep relating the discussion back to your specific research topic.
• Make a clear argument. Keep in mind that this is a chance to present your take on a topic. Your literature review showcases your own informed interpretation of a specific area of research. If you have followed the advice given in this guide you will have been careful and selective in choosing your sources. You are in control of how you present them to your reader.

There are several different ways to structure the literature review chapter of your dissertation. Two of the most common strategies are thematic structure and chronological structure (the two of which can also be combined ). However you structure the literature review, this section of the dissertation normally culminates in identifying the research gap.

Thematic structure

Variations of this structure are followed in most literature reviews. In a thematic structure , you organise the literature into groupings by theme (i.e., subtopic or focus). You then arrange the groupings in the most logical order, starting with the broadest (or most general) and moving to the narrowest (or most specific).

The funnel or inverted pyramid

To plan a thematic structure structure, it helps to imagine your themes moving down a funnel or inverted pyramid  from broad to narrow. Consider the example depicted below, which responds to this research question:

What role did the iron rivets play in the sinking of the Titanic?

The topic of maritime disasters is the broadest theme, so it sits at the broad top of the funnel. The writer can establish some context about maritime disasters, generally, before narrowing to the Titanic, specifically. Next, the writer can narrow the discussion of the Titanic to the ship's structural integrity, specifically. Finally, the writer can narrow the discussion of structural integrity to the iron rivets, specifically. And voila: there's the research gap!

The broad-to-narrow structure is intuitive for readers. Thus, it is crucial to consider how your themes 'nest inside' one another, from the broad to the narrow. Picturing your themes as nesting dolls is another way to envision this literature review structure, as you can see in the image below.

As with the funnel, remember that the first layer (or in this case, doll) is largest because it represents the broadest theme. In terms of word count and depth, the tinier dolls will warrant more attention because they are most closely related to the research gap or question(s).

The multi-funnel variation

The example above demonstrates a research project for which one major heading might suffice, in terms of outlining the literature review. However, the themes you identify for your dissertation might not relate to one another in such a linear fashion. If this is the case, you can adapt the funnel approach to match the number of major subheadings you will need.

In the three slides below, for example, a structure is depicted for a project that investigates this (fictional) dissertation research question: does gender influence the efficacy of teacher-led vs. family-led learning interventions for children with ADHD? Rather than nesting all the subtopics or themes in a direct line, the themes fall into three major headings.

The first major heading explores ADHD from clinical and diagnostic perspectives, narrowing ultimately to gender:

• 1.1 ADHD intro
• 1.2 ADHD definitions
• 1.3 ADHD diagnostic criteria
• 1.4 ADHD gender differences

The second major heading explores ADHD within the classroom environment, narrowing to intervention types:

• 2.1 ADHD in educational contexts
• 2.2 Learning interventions for ADHD
• 2.2.1 Teacher-led interventions
• 2.2.2 Family-led interventions

The final major heading articulates the research gap (gender differences in efficacy of teacher-led vs. family-led interventions for ADHD) by connecting the narrowest themes of the prior two sections.

Multi-funnel literature review structure by Academic Skills Service

To create a solid thematic structure in a literature review, the key is thinking carefully and critically about your groupings of literature and how they relate to one another. In some cases, your themes will fit in a single funnel. In other cases, it will make sense to group your broad-to-narrow themes under several major headings, and then arrange those major headings in the most logical order.

Chronological structure

Some literature reviews will follow a  chronological structure . As the name suggests, a review structured chronologically will arrange sources according to their publication dates, from earliest to most recent.

This approach can work well when your priority is to demonstrate how the research field has evolved over time. For example, a chronological arrangement of articles about artificial intelligence (AI) would allow the writer to highlight how breakthroughs in AI have built upon one another in sequential order.

A chronological structure can also suit literature reviews that need to capture how perceptions or understandings have developed across a period of time (including to the present day). For example, if your dissertation involves the public perception of marijuana in the UK, it  could  make sense to arrange that discussion chronologically to demonstrate key turning points and changes of majority thought.

The chronological structure can work well in some situations, such as those described above. That being said, a purely chronological structure should be considered with caution.  Organising sources according to date alone runs the risk of creating a fragmented reading experience. It can be more difficult in a chronological structure to properly synthesize the literature. For these reasons, the chronological approach is often blended into a thematic structure, as you will read more about, below.

Combined structures

The structures of literature reviews can vary drastically, and for any given dissertation there will be many valid ways to arrange the literature.

For example, many literature reviews will  combine  the thematic and chronological approaches in different ways. A writer might match their major headings to themes or subtopics, but then arrange literature chronologically within the major themes identified. Another writer might base their major headings on chronology, but then assign thematic subheadings to each of those major headings.

When considering your options, try to imagine your reader or audience. What 'flow' will allow them to best follow the discussion you are crafting? When you are reading articles, what structural approaches do you appreciate in terms of ease and clarity?

Identifying the gap

The bulk of your literature review will explore relevant points of development and scholarly thought in your research field: in other words, 'Here is what has been done so far, thus here is where the conversation now stands'. In that way, you position your project within a wider academic discussion.

Having established that context, the literature review generally culminates in an articulation of what remains to be done: the  research gap  your project addresses. See the next tab for further explanation and examples.

Demystifying the research gap

The term research gap   is intimidating for many students, who might mistakenly believe that every single element of their research needs to be brand new and fully innovative. This isn't the case!

The gap in many projects will be rather niche or specific. You might be helping to update or re-test knowledge rather than starting from scratch. Perhaps you have repeated a study but changed one variable. Maybe you are considering a much discussed research question, but with a lesser used methodological approach.

To demonstrate the wide variety of gaps a project could address, consider the examples below. The categories used and examples included are by no means comprehensive, but they should be helpful if you are struggling to articulate the gap your literature review has identified.

***P lease note that the content of the example statements has been invented for the sake of demonstration. The example statements should not be taken as expressions of factual information.

Gaps related to population or geography

Many dissertation research questions involve the study of a specific population. Those populations can be defined by nationality, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, socioeconomic class, political beliefs, religion, health status, or other factors. Other research questions target a specific geography (e.g. a country, territory, city, or similar). Perhaps your broader research question has been pursued by many prior scholars, but few (or no) scholars have studied the question in relation to your focal population or locale: if so, that's a gap.

• Example 1:  As established above, the correlations between [ socioeconomic status ] and sustainable fashion purchases have been widely researched. However, few studies have investigated the potential relationship between [ sexual identity ] and attitudes toward sustainable fashion. Therefore...
• Example 2:  Whilst the existing literature has established a clear link between [ political beliefs ] and perceptions of socialized healthcare, the influence of [ religious belief ] is less understood, particularly in regards to [ Religion ABC ].
• Example 3:  Available evidence confirms that the widespread adoption of Technology XYZ in [ North America ] has improved manufacturing efficiency and reduced costs in the automotive sector. Using predictive AI models, the present research seeks to explore whether deployment of Technology XYZ could benefit the automotive sector of [ Europe ] in similar ways.

Gaps related to theoretical framework

The original contribution might involve examining something through a new lens.  Theoretical framework  refers, most simply, to the theory or theories a writer will use to make sense of and shape (i.e., frame ) their discussion. Perhaps your topic has been analysed in great detail through certain theoretical lenses, but you intend to frame your analysis using a theory that fewer scholars have applied to the topic: if so, that's a gap.

• Example 1:  Existing discussions of the ongoing revolution in Country XYZ frame the unrest in terms of [ theory A ] and [ theory B ]. The present research will instead analyse the situation using [ theory C ], allowing greater insight into...
• Example 2:  In the first section of this literature review, I examined the [ postmodern ], [ Marxist ], and [ pragmatist ] analyses that dominate academic discussion of The World According to Garp.  By revisiting this modern classic through the lens of [ queer theory ], I intend to...

Gaps related to methodological approach

The research gap might be defined by differences of methodology (see our Writing the Methodology guide for more). Perhaps your dissertation poses a central question that other scholars have researched, but they have applied different methods to find the answer(s): if so, that's a gap.

• Example 1:  Previous studies have relied largely upon the [ qualitative analysis of interview transcripts ] to measure the marketing efficacy of body-positive advertising campaigns. It is problematic that little quantitative data underpins present findings in this area. Therefore, I will address this research gap by [ using algorithm XYZ to quantify and analyse social-media interactions ] to determine whether...
• Example 2: Via [ quantitative and mixed-methods studies ], previous literature has explored how demographic differences influence the probability of a successful match on Dating App XYZ. By instead [ conducting a content analysis of pre-match text interactions ] on Dating App XYZ, I will...

Scarcity as a gap

Absolutes such as never  and always  rarely apply in academia, but here is an exception: in academia, a single study or analysis is  never  enough. Thus, the gap you address needn't be a literal void in the discussion. The gap could instead have to do with  replicability  or  depth/scope.  In these cases, you are adding value and contributing to the academic process by testing emerging knowledge or expanding underdeveloped discussions.

• Example:  Initial research points to the efficacy of Learning Strategy ABC in helping children with dyslexia build their reading confidence. However, as detailed earlier in this review, only four published studies have tested the intervention, and two of those studies were conducted in a laboratory. To expand our growing understanding of how Learning Strategy ABC functions in classroom environments, I will...

Elapsed time as a gap

Academia values up-to-date knowledge and findings, so another valid type of gap relates to elapsed time. Many factors that can influence or shape research findings are ever evolving: technology, popular culture, and political climates, to name just a few. Due to such changes, it's important for scholars in most fields to continually update findings. Perhaps your dissertation adds value by contributing to this process.

For example, imagine if a scholar today were to rely on a handbook of marketing principles published in 1998. As good as that research might have been in 1998, technology (namely, the internet) has advanced drastically since then. The handbook's discussion of online marketing strategies will be laughably outdated when compared to more recent literature.

• Example:  A wide array of literature has explored the ways in which perceptions of gender influence professional recruitment practices in the UK. The bulk of said literature, however, was published prior to the #MeToo movement and resultant shifts in discourse around gender, power imbalances and professional advancement. Therefore...

What to avoid

This portion of the guide will cover some common missteps you should try to avoid in writing your literature review. Scroll to continue reading, or click a heading below to jump immediately to that section.

Writing up before you have read up

Trying to write your literature review before you have conducted adequate research is a recipe for panic and frustration. The literature review, more than any other chapter in your dissertation, depends upon your critical understanding of a range of relevant literature. If you have only dipped your toe into the pool of literature (rather than diving in!), you will naturally struggle to develop this section of the writing. Focus on developing your relevant bases of knowledge before you commit too much time to drafting.

Believing you need to read everything

As established above, a literature review does require a significant amount of reading. However, you aren't expected to review  everything ever written  about your topic. Instead, aim to develop a more strategic approach to your research. A strategic approach to research looks different from one project to the next, but here are some questions to help you prioritise:

• If your field values up-to-date research and discoveries, carefully consider the 'how' and 'what' before investing time reading older sources: how will the source function in your dissertation, and what will it add to your writing?
• Try to break your research question(s) down into component parts. Then, map out where your literature review will need to provide extensive detail and where it can instead present quicker background. Allocate your research time and effort accordingly. 

Omitting dissenting views or findings

While reviewing the literature, you might discover authors who disagree with your central argument or whose own findings contradict your hypothesis. Don't omit those sources: embrace them! Remember, the literature review aims to explore the academic dialogue around your topic: disagreements or conflicting findings are often part of that dialogue, and including them in your writing will create a sense of rich, critical engagement. In fact, highlighting any disagreements amongst scholars is a great way to emphasise the relevance of, and need for, your own research.

Miscalculating the scope

As shown in the funnel structure (see 'Structure' tab for more), a literature review often starts broadly and then narrows the dialogue as it progresses, ultimately bringing the reader to the dissertation's specific research topic (e.g. the funnel's narrowest point).

Within that structure, it's common for writers to miscalculate the scope required. They might open the literature review far too broadly, dedicating disproportionate space to developing background information or general theory; alternately, they might rush into the narrowest part of the discussion, failing to develop any sense of surrounding context or background, first.

It takes trial and error to determine the appropriate scope for your literature review. To help with this...

• Imagine your literature review subtopics cascading down a stairwell,  as in the illustration below.
• Place the broadest concepts on the highest steps, then narrow down to the most specific concepts on the lowest steps: the scope 'zooms in' as you move down the stairwell.
• Now, consider which step is the most logical starting place for your readers. Do they need to start all the way at the top, or should you 'zoom in'?

The illustration above shows a stairwell diagram of a dissertation that aims to analyse Stephen King's horror novel  The Stand  through the lens of a specific feminist literary theory.

• If the literature review began on one of the bottom two steps, this would feel rushed and inadequate. The writer needs to explore and define the relevant theoretical lens before they discuss how it has been applied by other scholars.
• If the literature review began on the very top step, this would feel comically broad in terms of scope: in this writing context, the reader doesn't require a detailed account of the entire history of feminism!

The third step, therefore, represents a promising starting point: not too narrow, not too broad.

The 'islands' structure

Above all else, a literature review needs to synthesize a range of sources   in a logical fashion. In this context, to  synthesize  means to bring together, connect, weave, and/or relate. A common mistake writers make is failing to conduct such synthesis, and instead discussing each source in isolation. This leads to a disconnected structure, with each source treated like its own little 'island'. The island approach works for very few projects.

Some writers end up with this island structure because they confuse the nature of the  literature review  with the nature of an annotated bibliography . The latter is a tool you can use to analyse and keep track of individual sources, and most annotated bibliographies will indeed be arranged in a source-by-source structure. That's fine for pre-writing and notetaking, but to structure the literature review, you need to think about connections and overlaps between sources rather than considering them as stand-alone works.

If you are struggling to forge connections between your sources, break down the process into tiny steps:

• e.g. Air pollution from wood-burning stoves in homes.
• e.g.  Bryant and Dao (2022) found that X% of small particle pollution in the United Kingdom can be attributed to the use of wood-burning stoves.
• e.g.  A study by Williams (2023) reinforced those findings, indicating that small particle pollution has...
• e.g.  However, Landers (2023) cautions that factor ABC and factor XYZ may contribute equally to poor air quality, suggesting that further research...

The above exercise is  not  meant to suggest that you can only write one sentence per source: you can write more than that, of course! The exercise is simply designed to help you start synthesizing the literature rather than giving each source the island treatment.

Q: I still don't get it - what's the point of a literature review?

A: Let's boil it down to three key points...

• The literature review provides a platform for you, as a scholar, to demonstrate your understanding of how your research area has evolved. By engaging with seminal texts or the most up-to-date findings in your field, you can situate your own research within the relevant academic context(s) or conversation(s).
• The literature review allows you to identify the research gap your project addresses: in other words, what you will add to discussions in your academic field.
• Finally, the literature review justifies the reason for your research. By exploring existing literature, you can highlight the relevance and purpose of your own research.

Q: What if I don't have a gap?

A:  It's normal to struggle with identifying a research gap. This can be particularly true if you are working in a highly saturated research area, broadly speaking: for example, if you are studying the links between nutrition and diabetes, or if you are studying Shakespeare.

The 'What to Avoid' tab explained that  miscalculating the scope  is a common mistake in literature reviews. If you are struggling to identify your gap, scope might be the culprit, particularly if you are working in a saturated field. Remember that the gap is the narrowest part of the funnel, the smallest nesting doll, the lowest step: this means your contribution in that giant academic conversation will need to be quite 'zoomed in':

This is not a valid gap →  Analysing Shakespeare's sonnets.

This might be a valid gap →  Conducting an ecocritical analysis of the visual motifs of Shakespeare's final five procreation sonnets (e.g. sonnets number thirteen to seventeen).

In the above example, the revised attempt to articulate a gap 'zooms in' by identifying a particular theoretical lens (e.g. ecocriticism), a specific convention to analyse (e.g. use of visual motifs), and a narrower object (e.g. five sonnets rather than all 150+). The field of Shakespeare studies might be crowded, but there is nonetheless room to make an original contribution.

Conversely, it might be difficult to identify the gap if you are working not in a saturated field, but in a brand new or niche research area. How can you situate your work within a relevant academic conversation if it seems like the 'conversation' is just you talking to yourself?

In these cases, rather than 'zooming in', you might find it helpful to 'zoom out'. If your topic is niche, think creatively about who will be interested in your results. Who would benefit from understanding your findings? Who could potentially apply them or build upon them? Thinking of this in interdisciplinary terms is helpful for some projects.

Tip:  Venn diagrams and mind maps are great ways to explore how  your research connects to, and diverges from, the existing literature.

Q: How many references should I use in my literature review?

A:  This question is risky to answer because the variations between individual projects and disciplines make it impossible to provide a universal answer. The fact is that one dissertation might have 50 more references than another, yet the two projects could be equally rigorous and successful in fulfilling their research aims.

With that warning in mind, let's consider a 'standard' dissertation of around 10K words. In that context, referencing 30 to 40 sources in your literature review tends to work well. Again, this is  not  a universally accurate rule, but a ballpark figure for you to contemplate. If the 30 to 40 estimate seems frighteningly high to you, do remember that many sources will be used sparingly rather than being mulled over at length. Consider this example:

In British GP practices, pharmaceutical treatment is most often prescribed for Health Condition XYZ ( Carlos, 2019; Jones, 2020 ; Li, 2022 ). Lifestyle modifications, such as physical exercise or meditation practices, have only recently...

When writing critically, it's important to validate findings across studies rather than trusting only one source. Therefore, this writer has cited three recent studies that agree about the claim being made. The writer will delve into other sources at more length, but here, it makes sense to cite the literature and move quickly along.

As you search the databases and start following the relevant trails of 'research bread crumbs', you will be surprised how quickly your reference list grows.

Q: What if there isn't enough relevant literature on my topic?

A: Think creatively about the literature you are using and engaging with. A good start is panning out to consider your topic more broadly: you might not identify articles that discuss your  exact  topic, but what can you discover if you shift your focus up one level?

Imagine, for example, that Norah is researching how artificial intelligence (AI) can be used to provide dance instruction. She discovers that no one has written about this topic. Rather than panicking, she breaks down her research question into its component parts to consider what research  might  exist.

• First, dance instruction: literature on how dance has traditionally been taught (i.e., not with AI) is still relevant because it will provide background and context. To appreciate the challenges or opportunities that transition to AI instruction might bring, we need to understand the status quo. Norah might also search for articles that analyse how other technological shifts have affected dance instruction: for example, how YouTube popularized at-home dance study, or how live video services like Zoom enabled real-time interaction between dance pupils and teachers despite physical distance.
• Next, artificial intelligence used for instruction: Norah can seek out research on, and examples of, the application of AI for instructive purposes. Even if those purposes don't involve dance, such literature can contribute to illustrating the broader context around Norah's project.
• Could it be relevant to discuss the technologies used to track an actor's real-life movements and convert them into the motions of a video game character? Perhaps there are parallels!
• Could it be relevant to explore research on applications of AI in creative writing and visual art? Could be relevant since dance is also a creative field!

In summary, don't panic if you can't find research on your  exact  question or topic. Think through the broader context and parallel ideas, and you will soon find what you need.

Q: What if my discipline doesn't require a literature review chapter?

A: This is a great question. Whilst many disciplines dictate that your dissertation should include a chapter called Literature Review , not all subjects follow this convention. Those subjects will still expect you to incorporate a range of external literature, but you will nest the sources under different headings.

For example, some disciplines dictate an introductory chapter that is longer than average, and you essentially nest a miniature literature review inside the introduction, itself. Although the writing is more condensed and falls under a subheading of the introduction, the techniques and principles of writing a literature review (for example, moving from the broad to the narrow) will still prove relevant.

Some disciplines include chapters with names like Background , History , Theoretical Framework , etc. The exact functions of such chapters differ, but they have this in common: reviewing literature. You can't provide a critical background or history without synthesizing external sources. To illustrate your theoretical framework, you need to synthesize a range of literature that defines the theory or theories you intend to use.

Therefore, as stated earlier in this guide, you should be prepared to review and synthesize a range of literature regardless of your discipline. You can tailor the purpose of that synthesis to the structure and demands of writing in your subject area.

Q: Does my literature review need to include every source I plan to use in my discussion chapter?

A: The short answer is 'no' - there are some situations in which it is okay to use a source in your discussion chapter that you didn't integrate into your literature review chapter.

Imagine, for example, that your study produced a surprising result: a finding that you didn't anticipate. To make sense of that result, you might need to conduct additional research. That new research will help you explain the unexpected result in your discussion chapter.

More often, however, your discussion will  draw on, or return to, sources from your literature review. After all, the literature review is where you paint a detailed picture of the conversation surrounding your research topic. Thus, it makes sense for you to relate your own work to that conversation in the discussion.

The literature review provides you an opportunity to engage with a rich range of published work and, perhaps for the first time, critically consider how your own research fits within and responds to your academic community. This can be a very invigorating process!

At the same time, it's likely that you will be juggling more academic sources than you have ever used in a single writing project. Additionally, you will need to think strategically about the focus and scope of your work: figuring out the best structure for your literature review might require several rounds of re-drafting and significant edits.

If you are usually a 'dive in without a plan and just get drafting' kind of writer, be prepared to modify your approach if you start to feel overwhelmed. Mind mapping, organising your ideas on a marker board, or creating a bullet-pointed reverse outline can help if you start to feel lost.

Alternately, if you are usually a 'create a strict, detailed outline and stick to it at all costs' kind of writer, keep in mind that long-form writing often calls for writers to modify their plans for content and structure as their work progresses and evolves. It can help such writers to schedule periodic 'audits' of their outlines, with the aim being to assess what is still working and what else needs to be added, deleted or modified.

Here’s a final checklist for writing your literature review. Remember that not all of these points will be relevant for your literature review, so make sure you cover whatever’s appropriate for your dissertation. The asterisk (*) indicates any content that might not be relevant for your dissertation. You can save your own copy of the checklist to edit using the Word document, below.

• Literature review self-evaluation checklist

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• Last Updated: May 30, 2024 2:45 PM
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Literature reviews

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What is a literature review?

Finding your sources, structuring your review, critical writing, literature reviews, critiques and annotated bibliographies.

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Literature reviews take on many forms at university: you could be asked to write a literature review as a stand-alone document or as part of a dissertation or thesis. You may also be asked to write an annotated bibliography or a critical review - both of these assignments are closely related to literature reviews, and follow many of the same conventions.

A literature review is an extended piece of writing that should collate, link and evaluate key sources related to a chosen topic or research question. Rather than simply summarising the existing research on your chosen topic, you should aim to show which papers can be clustered around a similar theme or topic - they may have a shared methodology, or have been carried out in the same context. You will be looking for strengths and weaknesses in the research, questioning the relevance and significance of the results in relation to your topic, and looking for any gaps or under researched areas. Your writing should make these thoughts and evaluations clear to the reader, so that they have a good understanding and overview of the body of research you have chosen to investigate.

Here is a short video that explains a literature review from the perspective of the reader:  

Salter, J. [Dr. Jodie Salter]. (2016, March 14). Writing the Literature Review: A Banquet Hall Analogy [Video file]. Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QE_Us8UjS6

Using Library Search

The more you read around your subject, the more familiar you will become with the current literature, and you will start to build a map of the sources you already have, and the information you are missing.  A clear search strategy can help fill these gaps in your knowledge, and your themes or topics of interest can be used as key search terms when looking for further resources.   

Top tips for searching the Library Gateway

• Use Boolean terms to help the search engine recognise which words should be treated as a phrase. For example, if you search “costume design” , the search engine will know to treat “costume design” as a phrase, not two separate words.  
• You can then add AND and OR to add in additional terms and synonyms. For example, “costume design” AND “film” will only find articles or sources that include both of these terms together, helping you to narrow your search. To go wider, think about adding in synonyms using the OR function: “costume design” AND “film” or “cinema” or “movies”.  
• You can also use an asterisk (*) to search for a word stem to help widen your search. For example, if you search teach*, this will find articles that include the word teach, teacher, teachers, teaching and so on.  
• Decide at the start on what your inclusion and exclusion criteria  will be. These might include limits on: - Date of publication - Language - Type/group of participants - Peer-reviewed journals - Keywords and synonyms - Type of study, ie. systematic review, case study etc.  

Search strategies

Explore the following resources for more information on search strategy models:

• PICO (Population, Intervention, Comparison, Outcome) - Used primarily in Health Sciences but offers a clear step-by-step approach to literature searching that could be adapted for use in other subjects.
• SPIDER - Developed from the PICK method, SPIDER searching is used mainly in qualitative research to identify a phenomenon or behaviour, rather than a specific intervention (more quantitative).

Finding the gap

You might have heard about  finding the gap  in your literature review - but what does this mean?

Looking for the gap in the literature means finding an aspect of your topic that hasn't been fully explored by researchers. This might be because you are researching a new technique or technology, or that your method or approach hasn't been used before in your field of study. You don't always need to find a gap, but it is a good way of demonstrating your literature searching skills and ability to compare a wide range of different sources. If you are able to find one, introduce the gap towards the end of the literature review, so that the reader can trace your path through the evidence first.

Literature review structure: A three-tier model

Imagine you are explaining your dissertation topic to a friend for the first time. Even for someone on the same degree course, they would need some context on the topic before you introduced more detail and complex examples.

A literature review follows the same  ‘funnel’ narrative , moving from general themes to more specific detail:

• Appraisal grid A template for taking notes from reading that enables you to find clear links and similarities for discussion in your literature review.
• PEP tables A template for organising notes from your reading by themes, theories and perspectives.

Paragraph structure

Each paragraph of your literature review should bring together or synthesise two or more pieces of reading (these could be articles, book chapters, reports, videos, policy documents etc.) 

Synthesis is the term we use in academic writing to describe the process of creating an opinion or argument based on a trend you find in the literature. If you are able to synthesis evidence, you are not only creating a robust argument (by avoiding relying too heavily on just one piece of writing) but you are also showing that you are a critical writer that can make conclusions based on a diverse range of evidence. Bingo!

As in other forms of academic writing, the paragraphs in your literature review should have four key sections:

Compare the following paragraphs against this four-part structure - which version is more critical?  

Although both paragraphs use the TIED structure, we can see that the discussion in paragraph B is much more developed, and gives a specific suggestion about how future research could be conducted. We can also see that the evidence in paragraph B is clearly linked together , and that the conclusions or critical features of the papers are explained to the reader. Although drawing on the same evidence, paragraph A summarises and describes the research papers , rather than giving an evaluation or clear comparison of the different sources.

Focusing on the discussion sections (in bold), we can see that paragraph B is more critical , as it answers a key questions to keep in mind when writing critically: 'so what?'  What conclusion or take home message do you want the reader to get from the evidence you have presented?  ‘Therefore’, ‘Consequently’ and ‘As a result’ are all good terms to use here, as they prompt you to be clear and explicitly explain on interpretation of the source you have included.

Other  types of literature review

Not all literature reviews form part of a dissertation. Use the tabs below for guidance on different assignment formats related to literature reviews:

• What are the emotional and behavioral impacts of therapy dogs for autistic children?
• How might aptitude be tested and measured in puppies selected for guide dog training?
• What are the key success factors for dogs as social media influencers on Instagram and Facebook?

Your initial reading will help you to identify trends or themes in the literature that might help to focus your search. You can then follow the standard structure for writing a  literature review, using the  funnel structure  from this guide.

A critical review, or ‘critique’, involves breaking a journal article down into its key sections so that you can evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of each part. Making notes on each of the following headings is a useful way to kickstart your analysis of any article:

• Research aim
• Research approach (ie. quantitative)
• Ethical issues
• Data collection method
• Data analysis method
• Generalisability/transferability

This list is not exhaustive and depending on your discipline, there may be other relevant categories to focus on in the article, such as theoretical models or implications for practice. The subheadings from the article will also provide an overview of the key sections to include in your review, and you may already have an idea from your wider reading of what sections often appear in articles in your field of study. Breaking down the article in this way allows you to focus your critique and evaluation, highlighting significant or relevant aspects of the article to the reader . Your assessment criteria will help you to identify which elements of the article to include in your critique: for example, if you needed to include a reflection on how the article links to your professional practice, it would make sense to include your thoughts on the articles key findings and transferability in your critique. For examples of sentence starters and academic language to use in your critical review, take a look at the following resources:

• Writing a critical review, UCL
• Academic Phrasebank, University of Manchester

An annotated bibliography combines a correctly formatted list of references (APA) with a short paragraph that gives:

• a short summary of the source, that picks out the key points of the article, such as context and setting, participants and conclusions;
• a brief evaluation of the strengths and weaknesses of the article;
• a sentence or two on the relevance of the source to your question or topic – what does it contribute to your knowledge of the subject, and in what ways might its relevance be limited?

​ ​ Sources are not discussed together in the same paragraph, but the document itself will have a key theme or topic that ties the different sources together – almost like a module reading list: Brym, R., Godbout, M., Hoffbauer, A., Menard, G. & Huiquan Zhang, T. (2014) Social media in the 2011 Egyptian uprising. The British Journal of Sociology , 65 : 266-271. https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-4446.12080 This article conducts a comparative analysis of quantitative data on social media usage and political engagement during the 2011 Egyptian uprising, using new bit.ly and Gallup survey results. The study generates a large amount of data on the key differences in social media usage between active demonstrators and sympathetic onlookers. Most significantly, the study explores the key drivers of participating in social unrest, such as a lack of confidence in the government, and how these are facilitated by social media. However, by only gathering quantitative data, the study is limited in its ability to provide an insight into how protestors narrate and explain their involvement in the protests in their own words. Overall, this article offers significant evidence to support a study of the importance of social media in contemporary political movements, and is particularly useful as one of few studies to focus on events outside of Europe and North America. Be sure to check your assessment criteria for tips on how you should evaluate your sources: for example, you might be asked to include specific methodology types or to link your sources to professional practice.

Two key principles apply to every literature review, whether it is part of a dissertation or an individual assignment:

 1. A literature review is more than just a list of sources. The articles and evidence you include must be linked together around shared themes and characteristics, or highlight significant disagreements and contrast. Map your reading using keywords or themes that occur in multiple articles - these can be used as subheadings in your draft literature review.

2. While it is important to show that you are familiar with research in your field, you also need to show that you can evaluate and offer interpretations of the evidence you present to the reader. Remember to keep answering the 'so what?' question as you write.  

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Literature reviews

• Starting your literature review
• Introduction

Structuring your reading

When to stop reading, how to organise a literature review, writing your literature review.

• Developing your literature review
• Writing systematic reviews

Useful links for literature reviews

• Study Advice Helping students to achieve study success with guides, video tutorials, seminars and one-to-one advice sessions.

• Doing your literature review (video) Watch this brief video tutorial for more on the topic.
• Doing your literature review (transcript) Read the transcript.
• Literature searching guide A guide to finding articles, books and other materials on your subject. Includes tips on constructing a comprehensive search using search operators (AND/OR), truncation and wildcards.
• Doing your literature search video - University of Reading Brief video on literature searching from our Academic Liaison Librarians.
• Royal Literary Fund: Writing a Literature Review A guide to writing literature reviews from the Royal Literary Fund
• What it means to be a critical student A brief and very useful video tutorial from the University of Leicester.
• Reading and notemaking LibGuide Expert guidance on managing your reading and making effective notes.
• Dissertations and major projects LibGuide Expert guidance on planning, researching and writing dissertations and major projects.

If you have thought about the areas you need to research and have conducted some searches for literature, you should be ready to set down some draft topic headings to structure your literature review.

Select one of your headings and choose a few key texts to read first - three is ideal to start with. Remember that you may eventually be writing about the same text under different headings, so bear that in mind when you are reading and making notes.

When you have finished reading your chosen texts, write a draft section summarising and commenting on what you have read, taking special care to show how it is relevant to your research. Then look to see what you need to discuss further, and do more reading to enable you to plug the gaps.

Try to set limits on how long you will spend reading. Then plan backwards from your deadline and decide when you need to move on to other parts of your investigation e.g. gathering the data.

You need to show you have read the major and important texts in your topic, and that you have also explored the most up-to-date research. If you have demonstrated both of these, you are on the right lines.

If you keep coming across very similar viewpoints and your reading is no longer providing new information, this is a sign you have reached saturation point and should probably stop.

Be guided by your research questions. When reading, ask yourself, "How does this relate to my investigation?" If you are going off into unrelated areas, stop reading and refocus on your topic.

Another thing you can do is to group what you have read into different topics or themes . These can provide useful headings when you come to write up your literature review. Use different coloured highlighters to identify which topic or heading each article fits into.

Be selective - you don't have to include everything you have read in your literature review. Only include research which is relevant and which helps you understand more about your own investigation. What you leave out won't be wasted as it helped you refine your understanding of the wider issues and identify what was relevant to your own investigation.

You don't have to refer to everything in the same depth in your literature review. You are usually expected to prioritise recent research. Some scientific research that was crucial in the past is now out of date. For instance, there may be a few older studies that were important in starting research in the field, but their methods have been surpassed by more accurate methods. You only need to demonstrate your awareness of these older, dated studies in a few sentences, then move on to discussing in greater depth the up-to-date methods and why they are more accurate.

Like an essay, a literature review has an introduction, main body, and conclusion.

Introduction : This explains the broad context of your research area and the main topics you are investigating. It briefly highlights the relevant issues or debates that have characterised your field of research.

It should also include some signposting for the reader, explaining the organisation / sequence of topics covered, and the scope of your survey.

Main body : An analysis of the literature according to a number of themes or topics that overlap with your research. It may have headings.

You can write your literature review one section at a time, but make sure you read through them all to check they link together and tell a coherent "story".

This should show how your research builds on what has been done before. Based on previous research, you provide justifications for what you are doing, why you are doing it, and how you are going to do it.

Conclusion : This should summarise the current state of the research in your field as analysed in the main body. It should identify any gaps or problems with the existing research, and explain how your investigation is going to address these gaps or build on the existing research.

• The structure of a literature review (Royal Literary Fund) Guidance on structuring a literature review.
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Mini-Module: How to Write a Literature Review

• 1. What is a Literature Review?
• 2. Features of a Literature Review
• 3. Writing a Literature Review

4. Structuring a Literature Review

• 5. What Should I do Next?

Mini-Modules

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Literature reviews tend to be structured like essays, but always speak to your lecturer beforehand.  Introduction

• Provides overall context
• Mentions a range of topics 
• Provides signposting
• Orientates the reader
• Introduces the need to read

The Main Body

• A series of different paragraphs, each dealing with an individual topic 
• Leads us logically to the conclusion 
• Follows a logical structure for the reader
• Summarises the main points made in the Literature Review 
• Provides the writer’s own views 
• Leads to the writer’s own research
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• Last Updated: May 30, 2024 12:43 PM
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Literature reviews: Home

Reviewing for research.

• Stand-alone review
• Scoping and planning
• Screening and appraising

The process of reviewing

• Planning a search strategy

Literature reviews

The writing of a literature review is an essential part of academic work. Most undergraduate students will need to undertake one as part of their final year dissertation or independent project. For most this will take the form of a traditional review which requires you to select appropriate literature to position your topic in its wider field and justify your research choices. For others, particularly those in health sciences, a systematic review is needed which has a completely different methodology with specific criteria for including and excluding material. Sometimes, a stand-alone literature review is set as an independent assignment. Whichever type of review you need to undertake, this guide should help.

Dissertations & projects

Stand-alone reviews

How are they different?

Systematic reviews

Help and advice

Selection/evaluation/synthesis

Plan a search strategy

The five stages

Literature Review Workshops (NOT systematic) Trimester 1 only

External literature reviewing resources.

• Literature reviews Useful information from the Royal Literary Fund.
• Avoiding the laundry list literature review Blog post from the brilliant Pat Thompson. Aimed at postgraduates but this is great advice for undergraduates too.
• Synthesize E-Lecture Handouts from the Harvard University E-lecture on synthesizing in literature reviews
• Conducting a Literature Review: Synthesize From Central Michigan University - includes downloadable matrix

Related books and eBooks from our collection

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How To Structure Your Literature Review

3 options to help structure your chapter.

By: Amy Rommelspacher (PhD) | Reviewer: Dr Eunice Rautenbach | November 2020 (Updated May 2023)

Writing the literature review chapter can seem pretty daunting when you’re piecing together your dissertation or thesis. As  we’ve discussed before , a good literature review needs to achieve a few very important objectives – it should:

• Demonstrate your knowledge of the research topic
• Identify the gaps in the literature and show how your research links to these
• Provide the foundation for your conceptual framework (if you have one)
• Inform your own  methodology and research design

To achieve this, your literature review needs a well-thought-out structure . Get the structure of your literature review chapter wrong and you’ll struggle to achieve these objectives. Don’t worry though – in this post, we’ll look at how to structure your literature review for maximum impact (and marks!).

But wait – is this the right time?

Deciding on the structure of your literature review should come towards the end of the literature review process – after you have collected and digested the literature, but before you start writing the chapter. 

In other words, you need to first develop a rich understanding of the literature before you even attempt to map out a structure. There’s no use trying to develop a structure before you’ve fully wrapped your head around the existing research.

Equally importantly, you need to have a structure in place before you start writing , or your literature review will most likely end up a rambling, disjointed mess. 

Importantly, don’t feel that once you’ve defined a structure you can’t iterate on it. It’s perfectly natural to adjust as you engage in the writing process. As we’ve discussed before , writing is a way of developing your thinking, so it’s quite common for your thinking to change – and therefore, for your chapter structure to change – as you write. 

Need a helping hand?

Like any other chapter in your thesis or dissertation, your literature review needs to have a clear, logical structure. At a minimum, it should have three essential components – an  introduction , a  body   and a  conclusion . 

Let’s take a closer look at each of these.

1: The Introduction Section

Just like any good introduction, the introduction section of your literature review should introduce the purpose and layout (organisation) of the chapter. In other words, your introduction needs to give the reader a taste of what’s to come, and how you’re going to lay that out. Essentially, you should provide the reader with a high-level roadmap of your chapter to give them a taste of the journey that lies ahead.

Here’s an example of the layout visualised in a literature review introduction:

Your introduction should also outline your topic (including any tricky terminology or jargon) and provide an explanation of the scope of your literature review – in other words, what you  will   and  won’t   be covering (the delimitations ). This helps ringfence your review and achieve a clear focus . The clearer and narrower your focus, the deeper you can dive into the topic (which is typically where the magic lies). 

Depending on the nature of your project, you could also present your stance or point of view at this stage. In other words, after grappling with the literature you’ll have an opinion about what the trends and concerns are in the field as well as what’s lacking. The introduction section can then present these ideas so that it is clear to examiners that you’re aware of how your research connects with existing knowledge .

2: The Body Section

The body of your literature review is the centre of your work. This is where you’ll present, analyse, evaluate and synthesise the existing research. In other words, this is where you’re going to earn (or lose) the most marks. Therefore, it’s important to carefully think about how you will organise your discussion to present it in a clear way. 

The body of your literature review should do just as the description of this chapter suggests. It should “review” the literature – in other words, identify, analyse, and synthesise it. So, when thinking about structuring your literature review, you need to think about which structural approach will provide the best “review” for your specific type of research and objectives (we’ll get to this shortly).

There are (broadly speaking)  three options  for organising your literature review.

Option 1: Chronological (according to date)

Organising the literature chronologically is one of the simplest ways to structure your literature review. You start with what was published first and work your way through the literature until you reach the work published most recently. Pretty straightforward.

The benefit of this option is that it makes it easy to discuss the developments and debates in the field as they emerged over time. Organising your literature chronologically also allows you to highlight how specific articles or pieces of work might have changed the course of the field – in other words, which research has had the most impact . Therefore, this approach is very useful when your research is aimed at understanding how the topic has unfolded over time and is often used by scholars in the field of history. That said, this approach can be utilised by anyone that wants to explore change over time .

For example , if a student of politics is investigating how the understanding of democracy has evolved over time, they could use the chronological approach to provide a narrative that demonstrates how this understanding has changed through the ages.

Here are some questions you can ask yourself to help you structure your literature review chronologically.

• What is the earliest literature published relating to this topic?
• How has the field changed over time? Why?
• What are the most recent discoveries/theories?

In some ways, chronology plays a part whichever way you decide to structure your literature review, because you will always, to a certain extent, be analysing how the literature has developed. However, with the chronological approach, the emphasis is very firmly on how the discussion has evolved over time , as opposed to how all the literature links together (which we’ll discuss next ).

Option 2: Thematic (grouped by theme)

The thematic approach to structuring a literature review means organising your literature by theme or category – for example, by independent variables (i.e. factors that have an impact on a specific outcome).

As you’ve been collecting and synthesising literature , you’ll likely have started seeing some themes or patterns emerging. You can then use these themes or patterns as a structure for your body discussion. The thematic approach is the most common approach and is useful for structuring literature reviews in most fields.

For example, if you were researching which factors contributed towards people trusting an organisation, you might find themes such as consumers’ perceptions of an organisation’s competence, benevolence and integrity. Structuring your literature review thematically would mean structuring your literature review’s body section to discuss each of these themes, one section at a time.

Here are some questions to ask yourself when structuring your literature review by themes:

• Are there any patterns that have come to light in the literature?
• What are the central themes and categories used by the researchers?
• Do I have enough evidence of these themes?

PS – you can see an example of a thematically structured literature review in our literature review sample walkthrough video here.

Option 3: Methodological

The methodological option is a way of structuring your literature review by the research methodologies used . In other words, organising your discussion based on the angle from which each piece of research was approached – for example, qualitative , quantitative or mixed  methodologies.

Structuring your literature review by methodology can be useful if you are drawing research from a variety of disciplines and are critiquing different methodologies. The point of this approach is to question  how  existing research has been conducted, as opposed to  what  the conclusions and/or findings the research were.

For example, a sociologist might centre their research around critiquing specific fieldwork practices. Their literature review will then be a summary of the fieldwork methodologies used by different studies.

Here are some questions you can ask yourself when structuring your literature review according to methodology:

• Which methodologies have been utilised in this field?
• Which methodology is the most popular (and why)?
• What are the strengths and weaknesses of the various methodologies?
• How can the existing methodologies inform my own methodology?

3: The Conclusion Section

Once you’ve completed the body section of your literature review using one of the structural approaches we discussed above, you’ll need to “wrap up” your literature review and pull all the pieces together to set the direction for the rest of your dissertation or thesis.

The conclusion is where you’ll present the key findings of your literature review. In this section, you should emphasise the research that is especially important to your research questions and highlight the gaps that exist in the literature. Based on this, you need to make it clear what you will add to the literature – in other words, justify your own research by showing how it will help fill one or more of the gaps you just identified.

Last but not least, if it’s your intention to develop a conceptual framework for your dissertation or thesis, the conclusion section is a good place to present this.

Example: Thematically Structured Review

In the video below, we unpack a literature review chapter so that you can see an example of a thematically structure review in practice.

Let’s Recap

In this article, we’ve  discussed how to structure your literature review for maximum impact. Here’s a quick recap of what  you need to keep in mind when deciding on your literature review structure:

• Just like other chapters, your literature review needs a clear introduction , body and conclusion .
• The introduction section should provide an overview of what you will discuss in your literature review.
• The body section of your literature review can be organised by chronology , theme or methodology . The right structural approach depends on what you’re trying to achieve with your research.
• The conclusion section should draw together the key findings of your literature review and link them to your research questions.

If you’re ready to get started, be sure to download our free literature review template to fast-track your chapter outline.

Psst… there’s more!

This post is an extract from our bestselling short course, Literature Review Bootcamp . If you want to work smart, you don't want to miss this .

You Might Also Like:

27 Comments

Great work. This is exactly what I was looking for and helps a lot together with your previous post on literature review. One last thing is missing: a link to a great literature chapter of an journal article (maybe with comments of the different sections in this review chapter). Do you know any great literature review chapters?

I agree with you Marin… A great piece

I agree with Marin. This would be quite helpful if you annotate a nicely structured literature from previously published research articles.

Awesome article for my research.

I thank you immensely for this wonderful guide

It is indeed thought and supportive work for the futurist researcher and students

Very educative and good time to get guide. Thank you

Great work, very insightful. Thank you.

Thanks for this wonderful presentation. My question is that do I put all the variables into a single conceptual framework or each hypothesis will have it own conceptual framework?

Thank you very much, very helpful

This is very educative and precise . Thank you very much for dropping this kind of write up .

Pheeww, so damn helpful, thank you for this informative piece.

I’m doing a research project topic ; stool analysis for parasitic worm (enteric) worm, how do I structure it, thanks.

comprehensive explanation. Help us by pasting the URL of some good “literature review” for better understanding.

great piece. thanks for the awesome explanation. it is really worth sharing. I have a little question, if anyone can help me out, which of the options in the body of literature can be best fit if you are writing an architectural thesis that deals with design?

I am doing a research on nanofluids how can l structure it?

Beautifully clear.nThank you!

Lucid! Thankyou!

Brilliant work, well understood, many thanks

I like how this was so clear with simple language 😊😊 thank you so much 😊 for these information 😊

Insightful. I was struggling to come up with a sensible literature review but this has been really helpful. Thank you!

You have given thought-provoking information about the review of the literature.

Thank you. It has made my own research better and to impart your work to students I teach

I learnt a lot from this teaching. It’s a great piece.

I am doing research on EFL teacher motivation for his/her job. How Can I structure it? Is there any detailed template, additional to this?

You are so cool! I do not think I’ve read through something like this before. So nice to find somebody with some genuine thoughts on this issue. Seriously.. thank you for starting this up. This site is one thing that is required on the internet, someone with a little originality!

I’m asked to do conceptual, theoretical and empirical literature, and i just don’t know how to structure it

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Literature Reviews

Advise on how to plan and organise your literature review.

What is a literature review?

A literature review is an account of the current thinking in a specific area of study. Its purpose is to introduce the reader to what has gone before and to provide you with a foundation that you can build on with your own research.

A literature review will often form a section or chapter of a larger piece of work (such as a dissertation), but you may be asked to produce a literature review as a standalone piece of work. 

301 Recommends: 

Our workshop on Writing a Literature Review will look at the role and purpose of a literature review and identify strategies that you can use to write a literature review as part of an extended essay, dissertation or thesis. The session will cover the key features of literature reviews, approaches to incorporating a range of sources into your literature review and common pitfalls of literature review writing. It will help you to plan, write and refine your own literature review section as part of a longer piece of writing.

A literature review will usually do some or all of the following:

• Introduce the reader to a specific area of interest.
• Organise relevant sources thematically, starting with the more general, broader themes and narrowing towards the most specific themes.
• Introduce key theories relevant to the area of study.
• Define your understanding of important terms or language used in the research.
• Include only the most relevant, important or influential sources, carefully selected. It is about quality not quantity!
• Identify gaps or limitations in existing research.

Considering a body of scholarship as a whole (or in relation to each of your themes) will allow you to 'synthesise' multiple sources and produce an overall summary.

Developing a literature review will help you to develop a level of expertise in your chosen area. By consulting and including a unique combination of sources, you will be able to formulate an informed and original perspective, which will drive forward your ongoing research. 

Action: start a bibliography snowball

Are you finding it difficult to filter sources using google or STARplus? Get a head start by finding one recently published academic journal article in a relevant area (using google scholar or similar). The bibliography in that article will give you a great head start in finding other important sources.

A peer-reviewed article will have been checked by experts in the field and the authors will have referred to as much of the influential research as possible. Once you have looked up one or two other sources from that bibliography, you will be able to cross-reference - which sources are appearing most frequently and appear to be most important? 

You will start a bibliography snowball that will grow each time you consult a further source. But don't forget to be selective and make sure your snowball does not get too big!

Organising your sources

As you encounter more and more relevant sources, you will face an ever-expanding amount of reading for yourself. If you were to read through all of the literature in a specific field from start to finish, you would probably still be going by this time next year. 

Academic reading, and particularly the process of 'reading around' a topic, is about selective, or targetted reading. You can find out more about different academic reading techniques here (Study Skills Online page) . 

Creating a Literature Matrix can help you to identify the key things that you want to take away from each of your sources. A literature matrix is a simple spreadsheet where you select column titles to suit the aims of your literature review. Are you interested in the research methodology, the scale of the research, the main conclusions, or something else entirely?

Once you have scanned through a source and pulled out the points you are interested in, you can move onto the next source. Organising your reading in this way will also allow you to identify key themes that are emerging in your reading, which you will be able to use later on to plan your review.

You may want to use a reference management tool to help organise and produce your bibliography. Visit the University of Sheffield Library Reference Mangement pages here . 

301 Recommends: use a literature matrix

You can access a blank literature matrix here (google sheet) . You can view an example literature matrix here (VCU Library webpage) . 

Synthesising your sources

Once you have a number of sources to work with, you will start to identify key themes emerging. At this point you can start to organise your sources systematically to develop and explore those themes. Can you organise your themes from the broadest to the narrowest and most specific?

A synthesis matrix will help you to identify a thematic structure for your literature review and to understand how the sources that you have found relate to one another. A synthesis matrix is a further spreadsheet that organises your sources by theme and includes a synthesis column, where you can begin to draw out comparisons between the sources. 

Once you have identified a number of sources for each theme in your matrix, you should be able to identify the following:

• Do the sources build on or develop one another (is this a chronological process)?
• Do the sources challenge or contradict one another? Do they reveal a debate within the field?
• Do the sources identify an area of particular interest or a gap in the field?
• Do the sources help to fill in gaps or complete a bigger picture?

Your synthesis column provides an opportunity for you to comment on multiple sources considered as a whole. It is a space for your critical voice and interpretation, which is a key part of writing a successful literature review. 

301 Recommends:

Library’s Producing a Literature Review tutorial: the interactive digital resource can be accessed here . 

Synthesis matrix: You can access a blank synthesis matrix here (google sheet) . You can view an example synthesis matrix here (FIU Writing Centre PDF) . 

Writing your review

Once you have done the background reading and organised your sources using a synthesis matrix, the job of writing your review is simply about adding flesh to the bones. You will need to write your review as a narrative account, but you can use your matrix as a framework to help you do so.

A literature review will usually follow a simple structure:

• Introduction: what is the overall topic area and how have you broken your review down into themes?
• Theme 1: the broadest, most top-level area (perhaps including some background theory that may have influenced your thinking).
• Theme 2, theme 3, theme 4, etc. Your themes should get more specific and closer to the focus of your research.
• Conclusion: how has this informed your thinking and (if the review is part of a bigger project) what are your research aims and objectives? 

Your review may be broken down by section heading or paragraph by paragraph. Each paragraph will describe a particular theme and finish by summarising your overview of a theme (the synthesis part of the martix above). 

Don't forget to reference all sources using an appropriate referencing style! Visit the University of Sheffield Library Referencing pages for more information. 

Related information

Academic Skills Certificate

Dissertation planning

The Summer Skills Spark: 5 weeks to ignite your research skills

Are you working on a dissertation or research project this summer? 

The Summer Skills Spark offers workshops to support you through every step of the process. You'll have opportunities to plan your projects, develop your research skills, explore dissemination techniques, and consider a future career in research. 

Collaboration between 301 Academic Skills Centre, the University Library, Digital Learning, and the Careers and Employability Service.

There are many ways to structure your research project. You may be given an exact structure to follow from your supervisor or you may have to decide on the structure that most suits your project. You should always consult your module handbook and your supervisor when deciding on the structure of your project .

In this section you will find some general advice about creating a coherent structure, some examples of common structures and some guidance to the type of content that is usually included in the different sections of a research project. You will not need to include all of the sections covered below; instead choose the parts relevant for your specific project.

Click below to see some example structures for different types of project:

Literature-based structure

If you are using a literature-based structure, you might look at:

Introduction

• Themed Chapters
• Reference List/Bibliography

Research report structure

If you are writing a research report, you might look at:

• Literature Review
• Methodology/Methods
• Findings/Results and Discussion

Business report structure

If you are writing a business report, you might look at:

• Executive Summary

Technical report structure

If you are writing a technical report, you might look at:

There are different chapter combinations depending on your type of project – consult your supervisor if you are unsure. There are more example structures within the advice about creating a coherent structure directly below.

• Creating a Coherent Structure

Creating a coherent structure

You will need to consider both the overall structure of your project and the structure within each chapter/section. It will be easier to understand and identify your key points if your work is organised in a logical and coherent manner. This means thinking about your reader; what do they need to know and in what order? You should have a clear idea of the questions you are answering and the argument(s) that will build throughout your project. Each chapter/section should link together with a common theme that underpins the whole of your work, and should lead towards a logical conclusion.

It can be useful to outline the overall structure as part of your introduction particularly if you are not using a prescriptive structure (i.e. intro, literature review, methodology, findings, discussion, conclusion). Explain briefly to the reader what will be in each chapter and why. Outline your key arguments and the order in which they will be presented. It can also be useful to include a short introduction and conclusion within each chapter.

Use meaningful headings and sub-headings to guide your reader through your written work. The examples below show tables of contents for different types of research project. You will notice that each project uses very specific headings to inform their reader of what to expect in that section. This will help the reader, but also helps you to plan your content and ensure it is in a logical order and directly relevant to your topic.

Video - What does a coherent structure look like? View video using Microsoft Stream (link opens in a new window, available for University members only).

• Abstract/Executive Summary

Abstract or executive summary

Presented at the start of your research project after the title page, the abstract provides a brief summary of your whole project and should be written at the end of the process. It should include:

• The purpose of the research project and the question you are attempting to answer
• The methods you used to conduct your research
• The main findings and conclusions

If you are writing a business report you may be expected to include an executive summary instead of an abstract. Written last, it will be presented after the title page and will provide a summary of the report. It will usually be longer than a research abstract (approx. 2 paragraphs), and will:

• Outline the key problem
• Identify the scope and objectives
• Emphasise the main findings and conclusions
• Highlight the crucial recommendations

The Introduction

This is where you will set the scene for the rest of your project. There is not one way to write it, but asking yourself these questions can help you to present a clear and well-structured introduction:

What are you doing?

Why are you doing, how are you going to do it.

If you are not incorporating a separate literature review or background chapter you might include a review of relevant current literature in your introduction.

The use of themed chapters is common in arts and humanities, or if you are undertaking a literature-based project. These chapters are where you will present and build your arguments. Each chapter should deal with a major aspect of your subject but link together. Remember you are constructing an argument, not just reporting your research or the research of others. You should analyse and evaluate the primary evidence, arguments ideas and conclusions presented.

Give your chapter clear titles, not just chapter 1, chapter 2 etc. Your title should accurately reflect the content and should be consistent in terms of tone and writing style.

Literature review

You will probably find that you have a lot of material to read through for your research project, and that can feel overwhelming. There are different strategies that you can use to help make your reading more efficient and to decide which sources are relevant to your project.

Video - What is a literature review and why is it an important part of a research project? View video using Microsoft Stream (link opens in a new window, available for University members only).

A literature review IS NOT :

• A descriptive list or summary of sources, such as books and journals
• An exhaustive bibliography on everything ever written on the topic - you need to make decision about what to include

A literature review SHOULD :

• Demonstrate an in-depth understanding of your topic area, including key concepts, controversies or debates, significant authors, terminology, theories and definitions
• Identify what research has been conducted and identify any gaps or limitations in the research to help you formulate your own research question
• Identify the main research methodologies in your subject area
• Provide a context and justification for your own work

Video - What did you find most difficult about doing your literature review? View video using Microsoft Stream (link opens in a new window, available for University members only).

Structure of a literature review

Every literature review is different; how you structure your review will depend on the type of final year project you are writing and what subject you are studying. It is a good idea to seek guidance from your supervisor.

Below are some common structures that could be considered, and it may be appropriate to combine these approaches. You may want to check with your supervisor about which structure(s) would be most appropriate for you.

Thematically

Chronologically, methodologically/theoretically.

Once you have decided on the structure of your review, you can develop headings and subheadings.

When deciding on the structure of your literature review, you may want to think about the degree of depth that you need to go into when discussing previous research. You could structure your review by starting off with general references to the literature in the topic area, then move closer to the literature that is directly relevant to your study. This is sometimes referred to as a funnel structure.

Medium Shots

Funnel model adapted from Succeeding with your doctorate by Wellington et al., 2005.

Longs shots and close ups adapted from Surviving your dissertation by Rudestam, 2007.

Introduction to a literature review

The introduction to your literature review may include:

• Why the topic you are looking at is important - is it an area of current interest?
• Has the topic been widely researched or not?
• Any significant gaps in the research
• Any debates of controversy about the topic, or whether there is a consensus?
• The scope of the review - what aspects of the topic are you going to cover in your review?
• How is the review organised, e.g. chronologically, thematically or methodologically?

Checklist adapted from Writing a Literature Review session, delivered by Dr Hazel Kent and Jane Sharp, Bishop Grosseteste University College, Lincoln, 2011.

Writing critically in the literature review

When you start to write your literature review, you need to draw on the critiques you have developed during the critical reading stage . You should be writing critically about the literature which can include:

• Comparing and contrasting different theories, concepts etc., and indicating the position you are taking for your own work
• Showing how limitations in others’ work creates a research gap for you
• Strategic and selective referencing to support the underpinning arguments which form the basis of your research
• Synthesising and reformulating arguments from various sources to create a new/more developed point of view
• Agreeing with/defending a point of view or finding
• Accepting that current viewpoints have some strengths, but qualifying your position by highlighting weaknesses
• Rejecting a point of view with reasons (e.g. lack of evidence)
• Making connections between sources

List adapted from Ridley, D. 2008. The literature review: A step-by-step guide for students. London: SAGE .

The Conclusion of a literature review

Conclude your literature review with a statement that summarises your review and links this to your own research/current issues.

Reviewing your literature review

This checklist will help you assess your literature review. Writing a literature review is an iterative process, so be prepared to re-visit it if you feel you haven’t addressed all of these questions:

• Does your review show a clear understanding of the topic?
• Have all key landmark studies been cited and most of them discussed?
• Is there a suitable structure and logical development to the review?
• Does the review state clear conclusions about previous research, using appropriate evidence?
• Does the review show the variety of definitions and approaches to the topic?
• Does the review reach sound recommendations, using a coherent argument that is based on evidence?
• Is the text written in a clear style, free of spelling and grammatical errors and with complete references?
• Does the review show a gap in existing knowledge?

Anticipate readers’ questions, do not leave your work open to questions such as:

• “What is your point here?”
• “What makes you think so?”
• “What is your evidence?”

Methodology / Methods

The methods section would usually appear after your literature review. For more information about what goes into this section, please see Researching Your Topic .

Findings / results and discussion

You might combine your findings and discussion into one chapter, or you might present them in two separate chapters.

Findings/results

You should provide an objective description of the key findings that help you to answer your research question(s). Even if your findings/results section is separate from your discussion, it is usually appropriate to highlight any significant results, indicating whether they confirm, partially support, are inconclusive, or contradict your hypothesis or previous research.

You need to consider the best way to organise your results, such as under the headings that reflect your research questions or by importance; consult your supervisor if you are unsure.

You should consider using headings and sub-headings to help your reader navigate your results.

Where appropriate, use tables, graphs or other visual aids to help your reader understand your results. Make sure they are clearly labelled and that you explain them in your text. You don’t need to present all of your data/results in this section, just highlight the key trends and use your appendix to provide the rest of the data.

You need to interpret and critically analyse your results and explain to what extent and in what way they answer your research questions. You need to set your findings within the context of existing research that you will have discussed earlier in your project, usually in the literature review. It might be helpful to consider the following questions:

• Do your findings reflect, contradict or build on existing knowledge?
• Do they confirm, partially support, are inconclusive or contradict your hypothesis?
• Are there any anomalies?
• Were your findings unexpected and why that might be?
• What are the implications of your findings?

Here you can return your writing to the context of the wider academic debates. This should draw everything together and reiterate your main argument(s). Don’t bring in any new ideas/theories into your conclusion; anything you write about here should already have been discussed in the main body.

• What have you found? Remind the reader of your research problem, including your aims and objectives and research questions
• Synthesise your main findings. This will involve highlighting the main themes and showing how they fit together (rather than repeating all of your points). What is your overall conclusion?
• How does your work correspond with, or differ from, other studies or theories?
• What has your research added to the academic debate in this area? Do you have any recommendations for future research, or implications for the real world?

Reference list / bibliography

You need to include a list of all the material you have cited throughout your project. Check with your school which referencing style you should use. For more information on referencing see Writing Up Your Project .

This is supplementary material that the reader may want to see, but does not fit into the main body of your project e.g. example questionnaire, consent forms, complete raw data. Clearly label your appendices (e.g Appendix A, Appendix B etc.) and use these labels when referring to your appendices in your project, e.g. "Appendix A shows…". Appendices are usually not included in your word count but make sure you check this with your supervisor.

Coherent structure in chapters Example

The following is from a School of Languages, Cultures and Societies master's dissertation entitled 'Antoinette's construction of the Self in Wide Sargasso Sea'.

Click to view and print this example .

Intro to Chapter 2

The second chapter of my research project focuses on the identity of the controversial character Antoinette in the 1966 - postcolonial novel Wide Sargasso Sea. While investigating the reasons that make Rhys’ masterpiece a rewriting of the canonical novel of Jane Eyre, I will also examine the intertextual relationship between Jane Eyre and Wide Sargasso Sea in order to explain how the Caribbean author managed to comply with her intention of restoring Antoinette’s identity; in fact, ‘remaining faithful to Brontë's plot line, Rhys exhibits the differences between the two sides of the Atlantic, the differences across the Sargasso Sea.

Furthermore, aided by Spivak’s and Lacan’s theorisations of the Other in relation to the Self, I will delve into the challenging task of comprehending the affirmation of an in-between identity such as that of Antoinette. This unit will, thus, lay the foundation for the analysis of subjectivity in letters which will be presented in the third chapter of this dissertation.

Conclusion to Chapter 2

The second chapter of the present research has offered an unusual interpretation of the construction of Antoinette’s identity in contrast to the latest critics of the impossible affirmation of the mad woman’s Self over the Other. Drawing on James’s and Sarup’s theorisations of the identity together with the Hegelian contribution to the subject, this chapter has demonstrated how Rhys has successfully accomplished her original aim of giving a life and an identity to Antoinette through the deconstruction of the oppressed character of Jane Eyre’s Bertha. The final chapter of this piece of research will attempt to prove the same through the analysis of the primary resource of Wide Sargasso Sea.

Intro to Chapter 3

If the second chapter of my piece of research tried to defend Rhys against her fierce critics who maintain that her attempt of Antoinette’s identity construction in the post- colonial novel of Wide Sargasso Sea is unsuccessful, the third one will aim to outlining the literary devices used by the author to construct Antoinette’s identity. While bearing in mind Lacan’s and Hegel’s approaches to the Self/ Other couplet, introduced in the previous chapter, this unit will analyse the relationship of power between Antoinette and Rochester in the heroine’s appropriation of the Self and it will give proof of Antoinette’s construction of subjectivity through the linguistic analysis of letters in Wide Sargasso Sea.

Click below to highlight areas of this introduction commented on by a tutor:

• The student provides a short introduction to this chapter by referring back to themes they have introduced in the previous chapter, and then then detailing how these will be explored more specifically in this chapter
• At the end of the chapter the student provides a brief conclusion which provides a recap on the main themes covered and then links forward to the next chapter
• Here the student makes a very clear connection for the reader between the previous chapter and current chapter. They provide an explanation of how the ideas connect, and what the reader can expect from reading this chapter

Table of Contents Example 1

The following table of contents is from a School of Law undergraduate dissertation entitled 'The potential effects of reduced street lighting on crime: an empirical study of the 'selective part-night street lighting' scheme in Leeds'.

Acknowledgements

Chapter 1: background.

• Leeds City Council’s ‘selective part-night street lighting’ scheme
• Selective part-night street lighting’s potential impacts on crime
• Reductions in street lighting and crime displacement

Chapter 2: Empirical study

• Preliminary concerns
• Research methods

Chapter 3: Summary of results

• Primary data: street level crime trends
• Secondary data: ward level crime trends

Chapter 4: Discussion

• Research limitations
• Appendix 1: Supplementary evidence
• Appendix 2: Raw primary research data
• Appendix 3: SPNSL site maps
• Appendix 4: Raw secondary research data

Table of Contents Example 2

The following table of contents is from a School of Mathematics undergraduate project entitled 'The dynamics of accretion discs'.

General introduction

Physical preliminaries.

• Position, velocity and acceleration
• Cylindrical polar coordinates
• Newton's laws of motion
• Linear and angular moment
• Newton’s law of gravity and gravitational field
• Equations of envy

The motion of particles in space

• Two body problem
• Reduction to a one body problem
• Minimum energy state

Further dissipation of energy

• Angular momentum transportation
• Mass transportation
• Summary of discrete particle analysis

Astrophysical fluid dynamics equations

• Introduction to a fluid element
• Lagrangian description of fluids
• Conservation of mass
• Forces on a fluid
• Equation of a motion
• Conservation of mass analysis
• Equation of motion analysis
• Derivation of the surface density diffusion equation
• Analysis of the diffusion equation
• Discussion of solution and steady state disc
• Keplerian assumption validation
• Accretion rates and luminosities of a steady disc
• Confrontation with observations

Magnetohydrodynamics equations

• Introduction to MHD
• The induction equation
• Ideal MHD equation of motion
• Summary of ideal MHD equation

Magnetised accretion disc

• Linear perturbation analysis
• MHD Waves and the origin of instability
• Discussion of linear stability analysis

Conclusion of the dynamics of accretion discs

Expressions in cylindrical coordinates, vector calculus identites, table of contents example 3.

The following table of contents is from a School of History undergraduate dissertation entitled 'Celebrities of an Age of War, 1739-1815'.

Chapter 1: The Martial Hero as a Celebrity

Chapter 2: structuralism and celebrity in eighteenth-century britain, chapter 3: context, character, and the importance of the public image, table of contents example 4.

The following table of contents is from a School of Civil Engineering undergraduate research project entitled 'The Effects of Cement Prehydration on Engineering Properties'.

• Prehydration of Cement
• Manufacture of Cement
• Hydration of Ordinary Portland Cement
• Hydration of C3S/C2S
• Hydration of C3A
• Hydration of C4AF
• Mechanism of Hydration
• Carbonation
• Properties of Fresh Cement
• Properties of Hardened Cement

Laboratory work

• Specimen preparation
• Thermogravimetric Analysis
• Conduction Calorimetry
• Compressive Strength Test
• X-Ray Diffraction
• Fourier Transform Infrared - Attenuated Total Reflectance (FTIR-ATR)
• Scanning Electron Microscope
• VICAT Penetration Test
• Standard Consistency
• Setting Time
• Flow Table Test

Results and Discussion

Abstract example 1.

The following abstract is from a School of Politics and International Studies student journal entitled 'Does corruption create additional challenges for Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in their partnership work with the Cambodian government (in education)?'.

Both ‘corruption in education’ and ‘partnership work’ have been given increased attention in international development sector over the last 20 years. This dissertation brings these issues together with a focus on the impact of corruption on NGO-government partnership work in Cambodia. This paper outlines challenges to NGO-government partnerships work under four key themes - definition, authority and legitimacy, advocacy and identity, and effectiveness. Cambodia is then put forward as a case study as it suffers from widespread systematic corruption in the education sector. The country has also had significant input to rebuild its education system through outside organisations, including significant support from NGOs. This dissertation draws on academic work, grey literature and eight interviews with NGOs manages to discuss “Does corruption create additional challenges for Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in their partnership work with the Cambodian government (in education)?”. It concludes that numerous additional challenges can be identified when looking at NGO-government partnerships through the ‘lens of corruption’ and partnership may not be the most appropriate model for addressing issues of corruption in education.

Abstract Example 2

The following abstract is from a School of Physics and Astronomy undergraduate dissertation entitled 'Quantum effects in biology'.

Recently, there has been a growing interest and controversy about the role that quantum effects might play in some biological processes. Here, two heavily studied examples of such effects are discussed: The impact of quantum coherence in the efficiency of energy transport in photosynthesis and the radical pair mechanism in the magnetic compass of birds. In this study, a review of theoretical and experimental work that has aided understanding these effects, provides the ground for discussion regarding their biological relevance. The findings of this work suggest that quantum coherence might be crucial for the efficiency of energy transfer in photosynthetic systems, whereas more evidence are needed to support the idea of a magnetic compass based on the radical pair mechanism. In addition, gaps in the current research in these two fields are identified and recommendations for further work are made.

Abstract Example 3

The following abstract is from a School of Languages, Cultures and Societies master's dissertation entitled 'An Investigation into Language and Cultural Planning in the Basque Country'.

This dissertation explores the efficacy of language and cultural policy in the Basque Country. It explores how Catalonia succeeded in reviving the Catalan language and culture after decades of oppression under General Franco’s dictatorship and whether a similar framework would be suitable for the Basque Country. The weaknesses in the administrative departments of the Basque government are exposed in addition to the inconsistencies of legislation in different Basque Provinces. The central issue concerns a lack of ideological agreement among political parties and members of the community which has hindered progress in increasing the number of speakers of the Basque language and encouraging interest in the Basque culture. The models of language and cultural policy used in Quebec and Wales are used as further comparisons to the Basque Country in order to establish whether it would be appropriate to explore policy outside of the Spanish context. Finally, the conclusion discusses how several separate problems have slowed the development of adequate policy in the Basque Country.

Executive Summary Example

The following executive summary is from a Leeds University Business School undergraduate report.

With recent budget concerns in the health service, the need to assess performance and accountability in regional hospitals has become even more important. This report was commissioned to assess whether a Balanced Scorecard (BSC) approach to performance management could be used in Eastham Hospital. The BSC tool was seen to be appropriate as it provides an overview of the risks and benefits of strategic and operational decisions. The information gathered from scorecard results will provide a means of accountability and support the health planning process. Based on the willingness of the board and employee attitude, it was also concluded that the BSC could be successfully used if the following recommendations are met:

• strengthening communication between senior management and hospital ward teams
• ensuring management are committed to the use of the BSC
• coordinating a target setting and reward system for staff

Introduction Example

The following introduction is from a School of History undergraduate research project entitled '“Uganda’s children are being sodomised left and right!”: change and continuity in perceptions of homosexuality in uganda, 1876-2014'.

On the 24th February 2014, President Yoweri Museveni signed The Anti - Homosexuality Act, an act prohibiting the occurrence, recognition or promotion of same-sex relations in Uganda. This is the apex of a state-driven, religion-endorsed homophobia which, since the Anglican Communion’s Lambeth Conference, 1998, has swept across the nation and embedded itself within public consciousness. Taxi drivers decorate their bumpers with stickers proudly proclaiming diatribes instructing people to ‘Say No 2 Sodomy’ whilst leading clergy implore citizens to ‘stand firm’ in their opposition to homosexuality. Across the rest of Africa these messages are the norm, not the exception; thirty-seven other African countries have anti-homosexuality laws. In 1995, two weeks after refusing to allow the organisation Gay and Lesbian Zimbabwe (GALZ) from taking part in a book fair, Robert Mugabe declared that homosexuality was ‘sub-human behaviour’, ‘worse than [that of] dogs and pigs’. More recently, in Zambia, Bishop Joshua Banda has claimed that same-sex couples ‘are doing it the wrong way’. With Museveni pronouncing that the Act was incited by ‘arrogant [...] Western groups [...] coming into our schools and recruiting young children’, it is clear that there are three major tropes within African perceptions of homosexuality; that it is (i) unnatural; (ii) un-Christian; and (iii) un-African.

Homosexuality has been presented as foreign to the African continent, since the late eighteenth century. However, it was not until the arrival of Christian missionaries in Buganda in the late 1870s, that this perception became cemented with their condemnation of Kabaka Mwanga’s homosexual relations. The Christian anthropologist, John Roscoe, had soon defined the sexuality of both the Banyoro and the Baganda as exclusively heterosexual. For the rest of the twentieth century, this presumption went largely unchallenged by anthropologists, and when homosexuality was mentioned, it was passed over swiftly or clarified as an anomaly. This continuing silence was punctuated only by the accounts of historians, who whilst writing about the pre-colonial Buganda, left the foreign assumptions of the missionaries unchallenged. Although the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) had been seen as a homosexual pandemic in the West, it was, and still is, seen as exclusively heterosexual in Africa. This silence was finally broken by T. Dunbar Moodie in 1994, who revealed that homosexual mine marriages were an integral part of a distinctly patriarchal microcosm in South Africa’s gold mines in the 1970s. This neatly coincided with the African National Congress including ‘sexual orientation’ in the equality clause of their new constitution.

With this barrier now broken, scholarship has been primarily focused on refuting the alienating claims of the increasingly homophobic rhetoric of African leaders. Marc Epprecht has been at the forefront of this research, perceiving homophobia, not homosexuality, as un-African. Recently, scholars have focused on trying to explain why virulent homophobia has emerged now; pointing their proverbial fingers at a multitude of factors ranging from fears of neo-imperialism, to the influence of the US evangelical Christian Right, and perceived threats to patriarchal heteronormative norms. While scholars may have answered the question of why now, they have been guilty of not delving deep enough into the past to explain why, a society they contend as traditionally having rather fluid notions of sexuality, has now unified behind homophobic principles.

Apart from being dismissed as the source of ‘un-African’ perceptions, little has been done to show how the Christian morality instilled by the European missionaries in pre-colonial Uganda is connected with the anti-homosexual sentiment of today. This is likely resulting from the fact that there is a distinct lack of African “voices” discussing homosexuality in the pre-colonial period. Outside of the unreliable quotes included in the plentiful accounts of the missionaries, the earliest mention of homosexuality by Baganda sources is within two histories written in the early 1900s. Although, they were written by two prominent converts, and as such repeat the moral language of the missionaries, by looking at their silences and using them alongside Luganda proverbs, we are able to explore how Christian mores transposed traditional notions of sexuality. Like anthropological research, colonial records are mostly devoid of reference to irregular sexualities. However, records relating to a series of disturbances at King’s College, Budo in 1942, reveal that homosexuality was prevalent amongst the students. Again, while authentic African opinion is limited, perceptions can be ascertained through careful analysis of the correspondence and reports of colonial officials. In direct contrast, the explosion of social media in recent years means that today’s “voices” are now easily accessible. Nevertheless, must remember that with homosexuality now a rather controversial topic, much of what Uganda’s leaders say deliberately creates or upholds certain perceptions.

With this in mind, it is important to define what ‘homosexuality’ means in this essay to avoid any confusion. Whilst Epprecht sees the term ‘homosexuality’ as embodying a wide variety of sexualities, it is defined by The Anti-Homosexuality Act as ‘same gender or same sex sexual acts’. However, it is clearly understood within Ugandan society as male-male relations, with current rhetoric distinguishing it from ‘lesbianism’. Therefore, although the male ‘homosexual’ relations discussed by the missionaries were not described as such, the term has been used throughout the essay in the interests of continuity.

This dissertation will attempt to provide a new insight into why perceptions of homosexuality are so adverse in Uganda today. In doing so, it will highlight how these perceptions have been marked by continuity and change over the past one hundred and forty years. We begin by exploring how the Baganda reacted to the Christian morality of the missionaries. Even though their narratives are limited, it is clear that this morality created an inflexible mesh of sexual virtues. This led to homosexuality becoming identified as a dangerous foreign immorality. Chapter II traces how, by the 1940s, this identity had developed, becoming associated with criminality and focuses on a period of disturbances which occurred within the grounds of the prestigious boarding school, King’s College, Budo. The final chapter explores how this multifaceted perception of abnormality forms a significant basis for the homophobic torrent espoused by Uganda’s leaders today.

• The student draws on legislation, journal articles, published reports and websites to set the context of the dissertation. They go straight into explaining relevant background about Uganda so it is clear to the reader why the student has focused on Uganda when researching this topic
• They also include relevant historic background about the recognition of homosexuality in Africa
• The student discusses and refers to current scholarship and where research is currently focussed. They reveal the gaps and weaknesses in this research
• The student continues to analyse in more depth the gaps in the current scholarly debates in this area
• The student uses the literature to provide a definition for homosexuality that will be used throughout the dissertation
• In the last paragraph the writer summarises how they are attempting to fill this research gap, outlining clearly the structure for the rest of the dissertation

Themed Chapters Example

The following is from a School of History undergraduate research project entitled '“Uganda’s children are being sodomised left and right!”: change and continuity in perceptions of homosexuality in uganda, 1876-2014'.

By characterising homosexual Ugandans as ‘mercenaries’, they become an embodiment of Western sexual immorality, prostituting themselves for a ‘gay agenda’.

With homosexuality foreign to cultural values, there is an assumption that NGOs are recruiting their “army” financially; Martin Ssempa has claimed that over $48 million had been invested into the ‘homosexual agenda’ over the past year. Although characteristically hyperbolic, Sssempa’s claim reflects a long-standing assumption within Ugandan society which connects homosexuality with financial transactions.

In 2003, after publicly defending homosexuality, a Ugandan academic received a text message from a friend congratulating her, stating that she was now ‘on [her] way to becoming a millionaire’ with all the money she was going to receive from the West.

One woman from Kumi District congratulated Museveni for having ‘served our people of’ Uganda, whilst signs at an organised celebratory event thanked the Government whilst declaring ‘Museveni, we the children thank you for saving our future’. This does nothing but enhance the perception that homosexuality is foreign, as with homosexuals now forced to go underground to survive, focus has begun to shift to the fight against ‘Obama, [...] the American Ambassador [and] Ban Ki-Moon’.

Homophobia thus forms part of a political discourse proliferated by both state and religious leaders in an attempt to assert the moral authority of Uganda’s postcolonial identity over a neo-imperialistic West.

The present incumbent, Rev. Simon Lokodo and his predecessor, James Buturo, have appeared frequently in mass media over the past decade, always presenting homosexuality as a foreign, aggressive malevolence within society. These public denouncements have become common place in a number of media outlets helping to construct a heavily sexualised ‘moral panic’ within Ugandan society.

Click below to highlight areas of this example commented on by a tutor:

• The student uses primary evidence (legislation) to put forward their argument that legislation led to homosexuality being perceived as a western concept and that financial gain and homosexual activity were inextricably linked
• Here the student is using primary evidence (appearance on a TV show) to expand upon this argument further. She does not just summarise what Ssempa had said but analyses it to reveal the significance of what he said
• The student then uses an example from a secondary source to illustrate their point further (an article from a journal article)
• Overall, in this paragraph the student has synthesised primary evidence and secondary literature to provide an analysis of their argument. This makes they have shown why they think what they think. They haven’t just presented the thoughts of others
• The student then evaluates this argument in more detail. Using literature (journal article) to show the significance of the argument being made in the previous paragraph
• The student ends by again drawing from the secondary literature to move their argument forward

Literature Review - Subheadings Example

The following is from a School of Geography undergraduate research project entitled 'Second homes: Investigating local perceptions and impact on communities in Cornwall'.

Literature Review (Chapter 2)

2.1 introduction, 2.2 the growth of second homes, 2.3 the emergence of british second homes in literature, 2.4 defining second homes, 2.5 the impacts of second-home ownership, 2.5.1 housing demand and local housing markets, 2.5.2 local services, employment and economic demand, 2.5.3 community interactions, 2.6 conclusion and gaps for further study, literature review - introduction example 1.

The following is an introduction to a literature review from a research project entitled 'An area based or a people based approach to measuring social deprivation within a national park? The case of Copeland'.

This review will examine the literature available on the main approaches towards measuring rural deprivation, with the view that literature overemphasises material deprivation at the expense of social deprivation. The review is comprised of two parts. The first focuses on the conceptualisation of rural deprivation, assuming that in order for it to be measured it first needs to be understood in terms of its absence from policy. The second focuses on ways of measuring rural deprivation and has three sections. Firstly, indicators of deprivation will be summarised and criticised in terms of their overrepresentation of the urban. Secondly two methodological approaches in measuring rural deprivation are reviewed; conventional area based approaches against recent people based approaches. Finally the policy implications of the two differing approaches towards measuring deprivation are examined with relation to a current inclusion of social capital in policy.

Click below to highlight the different areas of this introduction:

• Gaps in research
• Scope of the review
• Structure of the review

Literature Review - Introduction Example 2

The following is an introduction to a literature review from a research project entitled 'Life changes and experiences of international postgraduate student dependents: a feminist perspective'.

There has been very little academic or governmental re-search concerning female dependents of international students. Scholarship on migrant dependents concentrates on women with low human capital (Fechter, 2010; George, 2005; Yeoh & Willis, 2005) or the partners of elite migrants, including ex-pats and global businessmen (Walsh, 2006). The highly skilled, educated women who pause their careers to migrate as dependents rarely appear in the highly skilled migration field. (Purkayastha, 2005). Thus, this review will draw upon literature concerning a diverse range of migrant women who shaped my ideas of the issues a female international student dependent may negotiate.

Literature Review - Introduction Example 3

The following is an introduction to a literature review from a research project entitled 'BMI and Health: a u-shaped relationship?'.

More difficult to find is literature relating low BMI to health i.e. underweight and the health problems that are associated with underweight. This literature review aims to evaluate the information that is available regarding the u-shaped relationship between BMI and health, looking at both ends of the BMI scale. It also aims to discuss the use of BMI as an indicator of health and debate whether or not it deserves the high regard by which it is held by both national and international health organisations In order to overcome the lack of information about the relationship between BMI and health, this literature review will not limit itself by simply investigating studies that have linked BMI and health. It will explore research that has looked at the factors that influence BMI as well as factors (including BMI) that influence health.

Literature Review - Conclusion Example

Three principal inadequacies have been identified, illustrating the need for further investigation. Firstly, the amount of literature on second homes is very limited; widely neglected as a focus by a number of academics. The varied and dispersed nature of second-home literature means that it has not been able to develop as a mature literary realm (Haldrup, 2009; Hogart, 2001; McIntyre et al. 2006).

Secondly, research on the second-home impacts is widely based on assumption. Hypotheses are one-dimensional, assuming a simplistic relationship between second homes and host communities that can be summarised in a universal theory. The need for context and studies on individual communities is extensive; “actual impacts...should be seen as an empirical question rather than assumed to result from a standard cause-effect relationship” (Paris, 2009, p.306). Thirdly, second homes are often blamed entirely for negative impacts; in reality there are other factors that come into play. These include retirement migration, globalisation, inadequate housing, internet shopping and supermarkets, low wages, and the decline of ‘traditional’ industries (CRC, 2010; Gallent et al., 2001; 2005; Oram et al., 2003; Shucksmith, 2000).

The content of many previous studies can also be identified as insufficient: a number of academics still focus too heavily on profiling second-home owners, mapping distributions, and finding universal trends (Thornton, 1996). Field research on the impacts of second homes on host communities is almost non-existent. Local knowledge is very important to understand the complexities of such a phenomenon, but many researchers have not used this as a resource. The studies that do look at host communities have tended to aggregate ‘locals’ and ‘second-homers’ into categories regardless of their interests or opinions (Paris, 2009). Others ignore assessing the attitudes of second-home owners all together (Girard and Gartner, 1993).

Although a number of contemporary studies attempt to develop new theories about the implications of second-home ownership, there does not seem to be much progression away from ‘traditional’ studies discussed in Section 2.3. Many realms remain unexplored and questions go unanswered; this provides an agenda for my own research.

Findings / Results and Discussion Example 1

The following is a School of Psychology master's dissertation entitled 'An Investigation into the Representation of Muslims in The Sun Newspaper and its Effects'.

Findings / Results and Discussion Example 2

The following is a School of Media and Communication undergraduate project entitled 'An Investigation into the Relationship between Early Exposure and Brand Loyalty'.

Conclusion Example 1

The following is from a Leeds University Business School undergraduate research project entitled 'Dressed to Disrupt: Motivations Behind Millennial Women Consuming Feminist Fashion'.

This thesis answers the research question set out at the beginning: to understand the underlying values that are driving the surge in millennials consuming feminist fashion. Using laddered interviews, this research extracted eight value chains that revealed seven underlying values, fulfilling Research Objective 4 (R.O.4). These underlying values have been used as a basis to identifying consumer segments within the feminist fashion market.

The most dominant underlying value (based on the sum of direct and indirect links) is ‘Educating others/Raising awareness’ of feminism, suggesting an opportunity for successful marketing campaigns targeting educators. This finding achieves Research Objective 3.

Respondents noted their preferences for social media platforms with a more accepting cohort of users (such as Instagram), thus addressing Research Objective 2 (R.O.2). Despite literature debate that millennials are paying virtual lip-service to feminism (Schuster, 2013), this research finds that these young women are actually driven by their underlying value of educating others and raising awareness of feminism, through their visible (and sometimes costly) fashion consumption choices. Previously researched prosocial behaviours (Kristofferson et al., 2014) were found to be driven by the desire to present a positive image to others and to remain consistent with one’s values. This research extends Kristofferson et al.’s (2014) framework to include the fact that the consumption of feminist fashion is also driven by the underlying desire to disrupt the status quo.

• Here the student reminds the reader of the research problem and the research they carried out.
• The student emphasises the main finding from their research.
• The student highlights how their conclusions links with existing literature and frameworks. They could have also included some recommendations for future research to further understanding of this area.

Conclusion Example 2

The following is from a Leeds University Business School undergraduate research project entitled 'Exploring Social Perceptions of Women Leaders at Work: How does the Double Bind of Appearance and Personality Impact Women's Opportunities to make it to the Top?'.

The methods employed to facilitate this research have generated a deeper understanding of how the ‘double bind’ impacts women’s opportunities to make it to the top. Not only this, but enabled an exploration of the social perceptions of women leaders. Findings have indicated that authentic leadership, which is growing in popularity amongst organisations, may help women’s career progression.

The first aspect of the ‘double bind’, personality, was confirmed as women who adopted ‘masculine’ leadership styles such as: assertiveness and confidence were valued in executive positions. This supported existing theory that feminine styles of leadership are undesirable in organisations. However, this may change as women leaders reported the growing popularity of ‘authentic leadership.’ It appears that authentic leadership may improve women’s representation in executive positions, as organisations become more educated about its benefits.

The objective of comparing and contrasting viewpoints of women was also established during interviews. Both groups indicated a desire for authentic leadership. Despite this, massive contrasts between the two emerged, as many women at the lower end of the organisation held negative opinions on women leaders. This was due to leaders adhering to stereotypical forms of masculine leadership, which caused resentment. However, women leaders who adhered to stereotypical feminine forms of leadership were positively perceived by other women.

Establishment of barriers beyond the ‘double bind’ were also discussed. Motherhood and a lack of ‘real models’ in organisations contributed as barriers. Without the ‘double bind’, the above barriers would still hinder women’s progression, thus equality for parental rights and rewarding more working mothers would be an adequate response to this problem.

The research has mainly proven existing theory that the ‘double bind’ exists in organisations. However, this is statement is extremely difficult to generalise to all organisations, in particular industries. Although this research has contributed in identifying existing barriers to career progression, as well as a more covert form of the ‘double bind’, industries and sectors must be analysed separately to understand whether the perceptions of the ‘double bind’ are equally applicable to all industries.

• The student reminds the reader of their research area, and the main finding from their research.
• Here the student highlights their findings, and explains how these relate to the literature.
• The student highlights how their research has contributed to the academic debate in this area, and makes suggestions for further research to be carried out.

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• CAREER FEATURE
• 04 December 2020
• Correction 09 December 2020

How to write a superb literature review

Andy Tay is a freelance writer based in Singapore.

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Literature reviews are important resources for scientists. They provide historical context for a field while offering opinions on its future trajectory. Creating them can provide inspiration for one’s own research, as well as some practice in writing. But few scientists are trained in how to write a review — or in what constitutes an excellent one. Even picking the appropriate software to use can be an involved decision (see ‘Tools and techniques’). So Nature asked editors and working scientists with well-cited reviews for their tips.

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doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-020-03422-x

Interviews have been edited for length and clarity.

Updates & Corrections

Correction 09 December 2020 : An earlier version of the tables in this article included some incorrect details about the programs Zotero, Endnote and Manubot. These have now been corrected.

Hsing, I.-M., Xu, Y. & Zhao, W. Electroanalysis 19 , 755–768 (2007).

Article   Google Scholar  

Ledesma, H. A. et al. Nature Nanotechnol. 14 , 645–657 (2019).

Article   PubMed   Google Scholar  

Brahlek, M., Koirala, N., Bansal, N. & Oh, S. Solid State Commun. 215–216 , 54–62 (2015).

Choi, Y. & Lee, S. Y. Nature Rev. Chem . https://doi.org/10.1038/s41570-020-00221-w (2020).

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