Literature Review V1.1
Literature Review V1.1
• What is Literature
• Literature Review
• Literature Review Process
• Citing and Referencing
What is Literature
• Primary Sources
• a direct record of observations or findings written by the
observer
• Secondary Sources
• normally written after the event
• Tertiary Sources
• use and distil information from primary and secondary
sources
Cont…
• Generally,
• Demonstrate your knowledge
• Justify the gap/flaws in the research
• Conceptual Framework
• Inform the methodology
Literature Review Process
• Coverage
• Type of material,
• Geographical context/focus
• Time period
• Language
• Build your bibliography and article database
• Copying citations incorrectly, or incompletely, is problematic
to relocate the source.
• Master Reference Management Mendley/Endnote and keep a
correct entry from day one, every time, for all articles
Cont…
• Organization of Sources
• Group related studies together.
• Review briefly any weaker studies or studies that share
similar methods. Devote more attention to groundbreaking,
stronger studies.
• Organize studies by findings.
• Organize by methodology.
• Organize by theory.
• Use Reference Management Software, Mendley or Endnote,
when available
Cont…
S.N Title of the paper Purpose/Objective Methodology Key Finding/result Key critics
/remark
1
2
3
Cont…
• Paraphrase or quotation?
• When you use direct quotation, it needs to fit grammatically
with the rest of your sentence.
• Regulatory agencies have been known to take a hard line against
“corporate transgressors who care nothing for the helpless
investor” (Dellaportas, 2017)
• To modify a quote, you use square brackets [like this] to
include a verb or to change a pronoun to make it follow
grammatically.
• Omitted information from a quote is indicated by '[...]'.
Cont…
• Tone
• “A successful literature review constructively informs the reader
about what has been learned. “
• In contrast to specific and critical reviews of individual papers, tell
the reader what patterns you are seeing in the literature”
• Do not be overly negative
• Give due respect to the work of previous scholars
Cont…
• Tense
• The present tense is used for:
• a generalization - in overviews, statements of main points, or a
generally accepted scientific fact
• Example:
• "This thesis investigates the second approach."
• The past tense is used to:
• describe the contents, findings, or conclusions of past research. It
emphasizes the completed nature of a past activity.
• Example:
• "This xxxxx was popular in the 1970s.”
Cont…
• Revision of Drafts
• Leave first draft a while before returning to read it afresh
and revise
• Read aloud for sense and flow
• Read through quickly for overview of message
• Check for grammatical construction and spelling
• Remove extraneous words and repetition
• If over the word limit, ask – how does this section
contribute to answering my research question?
Cont…
• Plagiarism means taking the ideas or words from other writers without
acknowledging them. Along with fabricating results, it is considered an
academic sin!
• When you submit your thesis you must be very confident that all
sources are acknowledged; hence the Declaration Statement.
• References are ‘a list containing bibliographic details of the sources
cited in the text’ (Collis and Hussey, 2009, p. 96) shown in alphabetical
order by author’s surname at the end of the document
• The format depends on the referencing guide that is applicable to a
given piece of work
• Complete referencing is a sign of quality
Cont…