A literature review is a comprehensive summary of previous research on a topic. The literature review surveys scholarly articles, books, and other sources relevant to a particular area of research. The review should enumerate, describe, summarize, objectively evaluate and clarify this previous research.

1. Presented To: Dr Najia Zulfiqar
Presented By: Sidra Akhtar (PHD Scholar)

2. Learning Refresher On
Literature Review
Learning Refresher On Literature
Review

3. Definition of Literature Review
 A literature review provides an
overview of previous research on a
topic that critically evaluates,
classifies, and compares what has
already been published on a particular
topic.

5. Information Sources
 The term primary source is used broadly to
embody all sources that are original.
Primary sources provide first-hand information that
is closest to the object of study.
 Common examples of primary sources include
(speeches, letters, diaries, autobiographies, interviews,
official reports, court records, artifacts, photographs,
and drawings)

6. Information Sources
 A secondary source is a source that provides non-
original or secondhand data or information.
 Secondary sources are written about primary
sources.
 Research summaries reported in textbooks,
magazines, and newspapers are considered
secondary sources.. Examples of secondary
sources include biographies and critical studies of
an author's work.

7. Forms of literature review
sources
Paper
Source
Digital
Sources
Paper
Source
Digital
Sources
•Peer reviewed journal articles.
•Edited academic books.
•Articles in professional journals
•Statistical data from government
websites.
•Website material from
professional associations.

8. Approach Systematic Semi-systemat
ic
Integrative
•Typical purpose
•Research
questions
•Search strategy
•Sample
characteristics
•Analysis and
evaluation
•Examples of
contribution
•Synthesize and
compare evidence
•Specific
•Systematic
•Quantitative
articles
•Quantitative
•Evidence of effect
Inform policy and
practice
•Overview research
area and track
development over time
•Broad
•May or may not be
systematic
•Research articles
•Qualitative/quantitati
ve
•State of knowledge
Themes in literature
Historical overview
Research agenda
•Critique and
synthesize
•Narrow or broad
•Usually not
systematic
•Research articles,
books, and other
published texts
•Qualitative
•Taxonomy or
classification
Theoretical model or
Approaches to literature reviews.

10. The importance of and need for
literature reviews

11. 1. Bring clarity and focus to your
research problem
 You cannot effectively start the literature review search
without an idea of the problem you wish to investigate.
 The literature review can play an extremely important role
in shaping your research problem
 It also helps you to define the relationship between
your research problem and the body of knowledge
in the area.

12. 2. Improve your methodology
 Literature review acquaints you with the methodologies
that have been used by others to find answers to
questions similar to the one you are investigating.
 Tells you if others have used procedures and methods
similar to the ones that you are proposing, which
procedures and methods worked well for them and
what pitfalls they have faced with them.

13. 3. Broaden your knowledge base in
your research area
 Literature review ensures you read widely around the
subject area in which you are intend to conduct your
research study.
 It is important to know what other researchers have
found in regard to the same or similar questions, what
theories have been put forward and what gap exit in the
relevant body of knowledge

14. 4. Contextualise your findings
 Literature review helps identifying how your findings
compare with the existing body of knowledge.
 How do answers to your questions compare with what
other have found? What contribution have you been able to
make to the existing body of knowledge? How your finding
different from others?

17. A research problem is a statement about an area of
concern, a condition to be improved, a difficulty to be
eliminated, or a troubling question that exists in scholarly
literature, in theory, or in practice that points to the need for
meaningful understanding and deliberate investigation.

19. Tips for Literature Review
 Allow enough time. Don’t underestimate the time required to
choose the right articles. Select your topic and collect articles early.
Budget half of your time for research and reading, and the other half
for writing.
 Don't start writing too early. You need a solid understanding of the
research before you can evaluate it, and you need to evaluate the
research before you can write about it. This takes more time than
many novice writers realize.
 Take breaks. Leave time to step away from the paper so that you'll
have a fresh perspective when you return. Revise and revise. Expect
to revise multiple times. Ask others to read your paper before you
write the final version.
 Use specific language and concrete examples. Avoid vague
references such as "this" (e.g., not "this shows", but "this result
shows"). Sentences that start with "I feel" signal unsupported
statements; revise or delete. Have a reason for everything you write.
Make every word mean something.

20. Conclusion
 The purpose of a literature review is to survey, describe,
compare, and evaluate research articles on a particular
topic. Choose a current topic that is neither too broad nor
too narrow. Find the story that you want to tell. Spend a
lot of time reading and thinking before you write. Think
critically about the main hypotheses, findings, and
arguments in a line of research. Identify areas of
agreement among different articles as well as their
differences and areas for future study. Expect to revise
your review many times to refine your story. A well-
written literature review gives the reader a
comprehensive understanding of the main findings and
remaining questions brought about by research on that
topic.