How to Conduct an Effective Literature Review

Sage Research Methods - Reviewing the Literature

Getting Started

1. Determine your research question
   • It may be a good idea to already have started searching for literature to help understand the context of the scholastic conversation currently surrounding your topic.
   • Scholarship Is a Conversation refers to the idea of sustained discourse within a community of scholars, researchers, or professionals, with new insights and discoveries occurring over time as a result of competing perspectives and interpretations. Research and scholarship is never conducted in a vacuum. (more) 
2. Set your Aims and Objectives
   • Aims of the review are defined as general statements describing the purpose of the literature examination and emphasize what the researcher wishes to acquire. Generally, a project should not include more than two or three aims. 
   • Objectives are the steps that guide the literature exploration and support you to answer the research questions; they underline how aims need to be attained. Research objectives should be necessarily focused and precisely outlined, and should support accurately the use of concepts. (more) 
3. Establish several keywords and determine your inclusion/exclusion criteria
   • Think about relevant dates, geographies (and languages), methods, and conflicting points of view.
4. Choose databases and conduct the search
   • Conduct searches in the published literature in your chosen databases.
   • Check to see if this topic has been covered in other databases.
   • Examine the reference pages of significant articles for keywords, authors, and previous research.
   • Consider Searching as Strategic Exploration. It is iterative and nonlinear.  
     • Go to a new location or new database. Ask someone for help, or look for a different type of source. Find one good source and use that entry to find subject headings, keywords or citations in that article to push your search in a new direction.(more)
5. Review your results
   • Save your search results. It is recommended that you use a citation management tool (such as RefWorks).
   • De-duplicate your search results.
   • Make sure that you've found the seminal pieces -- they have been cited many times, and their work is considered foundational. 
   • Check with your professor or a librarian to make sure your search has been comprehensive.
6. Synthesize the information gathered
   • Evaluate sources for bias, methodologies, and thoroughness.
   • Organize your results to support your aims.  
   • Develop your conclusions.
7. Analyze the information gathered
   • Are there gaps in the literature?
   • Where has significant research taken place, and who has done it?
   • Is there consensus or debate on this topic?
   • Which methodological approaches work best?
8. Write the literature review
   • Pick an organizational structure, i.e., themes, approaches, concepts, methodologies.
     • For example: Background, Current Practices, Critics and Proponents, Where/How this study will fit in 
   • Organize your citations and focus on your research question and pertinent studies.
   • Compile your bibliography.

Note: The first four steps are the best points at which to contact a librarian. Your librarian can help you determine the best databases to use for your topic, assess scope, and formulate a search strategy.

Some content pulled from University of Texas Library page.

Search in CINAHL Ultimate using the PICOT method.

To search using PICOT:

1. On the basic or advanced search screen, click the PICOT Search link above the search box.

   

2. Reduce your question into specific keywords and enter them in the PICOT search box fields.

   Note: The (P)opulation and (I)ntervention fields must have terms entered. The (C)omparison, (O)utcome, and (T)ime or type fields are optional for searching.

   

3. After entering your terms, click Add to search. You’ll be taken to the Advanced search screen with your query populated in the search box fields.

4. Click the Search button on the Advanced search screen.

5. Your results are displayed.

~Content taken from EBSCO Connect

Mary Livermore Library offers many services and resources to assist the doctoral students of UNCP, including offering group and individual study spaces, study rooms that can be reserved, an open computer lab, WEPA Printing, and access to research assistance in-person or online at the research desk. Doctoral students may also book an appointment for one-on-one research help from a qualified librarian. All students can locate print, electronic, and course reserve resources through the Primo search bar on the library home page. Most physical material is available for check out by doctoral students for 6 weeks using their Braves Card. Resources can also be requested through Interlibrary Loan from anywhere in the US. Doctoral students may also take advantage of our Browzine platform to track specific journal publications within their field of research. 

Graduate students may find subject specific resources through the Research Guides portal as well as Citation assistance and Library Tutorials. The library also provides a Research Help page for students researching and writing papers.

BrowZine allows users to read and keep up with current journals. With an account, you can save and organize particular journals and articles. This video provides an overview of using this resource.

Browzine is a web and mobile app that allows you to search Mary Livermore Libraries subscribed journals in an easy, visual manner. This app is best for staying up to date with current publications in a familiar field rather than searching for new information. In order to use Browzine's Bookshelf, create a free account with your university email. 

RefWorks 

RefWorks is an online research management, writing and collaboration tool that is designed to help researchers easily gather, manage, store and share all types of information, as well as generate citations and bibliographies. You can access Refworks through Primo.

Note: RefWorks requires free registration before you can use this resource. It is important to use Chrome, Edge, Firefox, or Safari as your browser as Internet Explorer is not supported.

APA Style

The DNP Program uses the APA Style Guide. Style Guides not only contain rules for how reference citation should be written, but they also contain rules for how your paper should be formatted, how in-text citations should look, and how papers should be submitted for publication. Access to and Information about APA can be found through the above link. 

Dissertations can be a valuable source of information for graduate students. They provide an example of the type of work you should produce, including the format of a dissertation. Your program here at UNCP may require certain formats or features other schools do not.

Brave Pubs is UNCP’s institutional repository, containing all publications including articles, projects, and theses complete by UNCP students, faculty, and staff. Please submit articles, completed projects, or dissertations to Brave Pubs.