How to Write a Literature Review

Every college student must learn how to write a literature review, because at one point your professor will ask you to conduct research and in your report you must include a literature review. When writing a thesis or dissertation, you must include a dissertation literature review, otherwise your work will be incomplete. In this guide, we will discuss why writing a literature review is important, how to format it correctly, and the rules you must follow.

What is a Literature Review?

When conducting research, you must think about and look into the work of other scholars and researchers. You have to look at the available course materials, which have led to the task at hand. In a literature review you will present an analysis, synthesis, and evaluation of the literature you will use in your research. You should provide a detailed assessment of the literature available.

When writing a literature review there are a few objectives that must be met. They include;

1. You must provide a literature review that is related to the subject you are researching. The aim of the review is to demonstrate that you have conducted an in-depth study of available literature, and you understand how the information gathered fits into your research. In the literature review discuss your findings and give your opinion-based facts and quotes, and evidence.
2. All the research information must be integrated in a summary where you provide information that unites your thesis statement. You clearly state your objectives, and how the literature helps or does not help you to achieve the objectives. 
3. It is critical that you analyze all the information that you gather. Discuss the gaps and inconsistencies you discover in the literature. Analyze the theories presented and criticize the points of view. Ensure that you identify parts of the research that need further exploration. That is the importance of writing a literature review.

Stay organized. If you are not careful, you might end up mixing ideas and your work could end up disorganized and hard to understand. Discuss one idea at a time.

Literature Review Length

The length of a literature review varies depending on the subject, academic level, and target audience. If you are writing a dissertation literature review, the length should be at least 20 pages. However, when writing a term paper literature review, the length can be 5 pages or less. 

The purpose of writing a literature review is to understand the works and achievements of previous researchers before you begin to explore new topics. Therefore, you must find out as much existing information about your topic. A literature review will help you understand how to approach your studies and the challenges you are likely to encounter as you conduct your research.

Literature Review Structure

A literature review must follow a certain structure. Please note that the same structure is used to write and article review.

1. Introduction

In your introduction, you must give background information regarding the subject matter and the research objectives. Basically, in the introduction you will define your topic either descriptively or argumentatively. It is acceptable to compose a proposal where you ask questions and make assumptions. You can also state what you do not hope to achieve in your research. 

2. Body

In the body, you must organize information chronologically, thematically, or according to a certain theory. You need to summarize each entry, and demonstrate critical thinking by stating the pros and cons of each entry. Describe the relevance, depth, accuracy, and gaps in the entries. Logically connect the entries and follow a clear structure. Do not mix up information.

Below are some common structure methodologies for literature reviews:

• Chronological Literature Review Structure

When you choose this type of methodology to write your literature review, ensure that you organize the entries based on their time of publication. Chronological organization of information is especially important when discussing achievements in the subject. You should chronologically analyze how the changes and improvements made over time.

• Thematical Sorting Literature Review Structure

Alternatively, you can write your literature review based on the depth of discussion by different researchers or publications. If you are researching a topic such as Mental Health, you can discuss various sources discuss the issue to a greater or lesser degree.

• Methodology Structure of a Literature Review

This is quite a challenging approach, and it is mostly used when writing a dissertation literature review. This structure involves presenting different methods based on a problem or comparison methods. One common methodology is cause and effect, where you demonstrate how different entries or publications have affected latter research.

• Theoretical Analysis Approach

This type of structure focuses on a single theory and tries to adjust existing publications to fit the chosen theory. If you choose this literature review structure, you must state your thesis in the introduction.

3.  Conclusion.

In the conclusion, you will sum up your findings. Unite the entries by describing their commonalities. This is where you write the purpose of your literature review and describe what you have achieved. 

4. References

You must provide a complete and accurate reference list. The references should be formatted according to the formatting styles instructed by your professor. 

We hope that this guide will help you write an excellent literature review. If you still have difficulties, you can always seek help from Quest Writers. We are available to offer assignment help services to students in need.

Literature Review Writing Services

If you are still having a hard time writing your literature review, do not hesitate to request for literature review writing services from Quest Writers. On our website you can buy dissertation literature review, term paper literature review, article review or any other assignment. We have been offering cheap research papers to students for a long time. Therefore, we have lots of experience and we offer the best literature review writing service.

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