Lit Review Guide
- Last Updated Jan 30, 2013
A Literature review is the way to look at the past: to assess the body of literature, to synthesize previous work, and to locate the gaps in order to prepare for the future in directing the research process and formulating additional questions.
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Citation Help
Need help citing sources? Check out our style guide below. Details and useful links on JMPT and NLM styles are included.
- Last Updated Oct 31, 2012
Resources and samples for citing sources in your research paper with NLM, APA, or AMA Style, plus books, articles, and websites for improving writing skills.
638 views this year
Senior Research Projects @ Logan Library
Browse previous Senior Research Projects done by Logan students. Perform your own search by choosing Advanced Search and selecting Logan Senior Research Projects from the Logan catalog menu. Then add your own keywords in the search terms box and hit submit.
FULL TEXT - To view a the pdf of a senior research project, click on the paper's title in the catalog, then choose Freely Available Online.
Useful Resources
What is a literature review?
“A research literature review is a systematic, explicit, and reproducible method, for identifying, evaluating, and synthesizing the existing body of completed and recorded work produced by researchers, scholars, and practitioners”. [1]
“The literature review is where you identify the theories and previous research which have influenced your choice of research topic and the methodology you are choosing to adopt. The literature review, therefore, serves as the driving and jumping-off point for your own research investigation”. [2]
Why do a literature review?
It is very important to understand the goal and purpose behind writing a literature review:
- Provide a summary or understanding about the body of knowledge regarding a specific topic, and propose ideas or future direction of research.
- Writing a literature review prepares you to becoming an author/a scholar. It provides you with the background that you need to formulate ideas on what has to happen next.
What are the required steps to writing a Literature review ?
Fink establishes 7 steps to writing a literature review:
- Selecting research questions – a precise question that guides the review
- Selecting bibliographic or article databases
- Choosing search terms
- Applying practical screening criteria
- Applying methodological screening criteria: evaluate adequacy & scientific quality
- Doing the review
- Synthesizing the results into a descriptive synthesis or a meta-analysis synthesis
1. Ridley D. The literature review: a step-by-step guide for students. 1st ed. London: Sage Publications, 2008.
2. Fink A. Conducting research literature reviews: from the internet to the paper. 3rd ed. Los Angeles: Sage Publications, 2010.
Literature Review Examples
Below are several examples of well-written literature reivews created by past Logan students. They are good examples of construction, writing, and research and serve as models to follow.
Contacts
Dr. Rodger Tepe
636-230-1925
Office S119
rodger.tepe@logan.edu
Dr. John Gutweiler
636-230-1910
Office S110
john.gutweiler@logan.edu
Christina Prucha
Cataloger/Archivist
636-230-1783
christina.prucha@logan.edu
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