What is the purpose of a literature review?

... is to gain an understanding of existing research and ideas in a particular area of study.

• You build your knowledge in your area of study through evaluating existing works.
• You describe what has been studied thus far and identify areas of potential for further study. 
• A literature review demonstrates why your research is useful, important and valid.

It does not prove a thesis or answer a research question.

A literature review is made up of an introduction, main body and conclusion. 

• The introduction is where you present your chosen area of study.
• The main body is used to evaluate and analyze your sources, discussing their relevance and contributions to the field.
• The conclusion is where you present your findings and talk about areas for further study. 

What makes a good literature review?

• using credible sources to make clear and concise arguments to show your understanding of the topic

Choose a topic that is relevant and able to be researched.
Think about the types of literature that are leading the research in your field of study and the materials that are the most up to date.

Examples of sources include: 

• Peer reviewed journals
• Reports and surveys
• Academic books 
• Government documents
• Whitepapers and working papers
• Newspapers

Use Tutt Library database, catalog and journal links to gain access to these sources.

Evaluate the information you have found to ensure that your sources are fit for academic research purposes.  
Once you have decided a source is trustworthy, you can then read the content. 

Some questions to consider when evaluating sources are:

• Is this source trustworthy and credible?
• Is this source relevant to my field of study?
• What are the key terms and concepts?
• Are there any gaps for further study? 

Your literature review is a critical analysis of your subject outlining important themes and debates. 

Reading through your sources will help you connect common themes and ideas.
An example of how to collate your sources is to write brief paragraphs about how each source relates to your overall topic and how they fit together.
This review can illuminate areas which require further study. 
This will also help you to outline your paper and ensure you cover relevant points in your paper.

Paraphrase what is most important to your work. 
Cite, compare, contrast, critique, and connect.

Writing the introduction

Present your topic

- explain main terms and concepts along with relevant background information
- explain the importance of your topic and how it fits into the wider subject area
- also use this section to discuss the scope of the review including which aspects of the topic will be covered

Writing the main body

- discuss your sources making sure that every paragraph has a theme or is making a relevant point. This underlines the relation between your topic and the wider subject area. 
- lay out themes and debates concisely so that you present a balanced and well-thought-out discussion. 

Structures :

• What do you want the reader to take away from your literature review?
• How can you organize your sources concisely?

Chronological - grouping and discussing your sources in order of publication date.
- start with the earliest released literature leading up to the most recent.
With this method you track the progress of research over a period of time pinpointing relevant developments.

Thematic - grouping and discussing your sources dependent on the themes and topics they cover.
- count how many sources you have found for each issue and see areas where more reading may be necessary. 

Methodological  - grouping by methodology 
- how approaches lead to results

Theoretical - grouping by points you want to cover by theories or models, etc.
- analyze why an approach did or did not work

No matter which type of structure you choose, there are certain areas you need to cover for each source. These are:

• A description of the publication
• A summary of the main points
• An evaluation on its contribution to the topic
• Potential gaps in the research 

Writing the conclusion

- summarize and present your key findings
**Do not include new information or present new ideas. This section should only summarize the points you have already made. 

Refer to the purpose of your literature review here, detailing specifically what you have been able to achieve. 
To ensure a balanced literature review, you may also need to discuss areas which show flaws and gaps in existing research. 
Recommend areas for further study. 

Writing the references

- include a list of all your referenced sources in the bibliography

References give your reader an easy means of evaluating your sources and it highlights your work verses what you have used from the work of others.