Psychology Library Guide

A literature review is a summary of scholarly research on a specific topic.

A literature review can:

• Situate research you are doing within a scholarly conversation
• Demonstrate your knowledge of the research around a topic and justify your thesis or research question

It should answer questions such as: 

• What research has been done on the topic? 
• Who are the key researchers and experts in the field? 
• What are the common theories and methodologies? 
• Are there challenges, controversies, and contradictions? 
• Are there gaps in the research that your approach addresses? 

What is the specific research question that your literature review helps to define?

• You may need to do some exploratory searching to determine whether you need to narrow or broaden the scope of your research question
• Identify databases that provide the most relevant sources, and identify relevant terms to add to your search strategy

The narrower your topic, the easier it will be to limit the number of sources you need to read.

Feeling stuck? Here are some ways you can narrow down your topic:

• Geographic location
• Time period
• Discipline/field of study
• Population
• Language
• Age group, etc.

You may find that the research question you begin with evolves as you learn more about the topic.

To do a thorough search of the literature on the topic, define the basic criteria: 

• What types of sources should you include?
  • Primary or secondary sources? Or a combination of both? 
• What time period should it cover? Is current information important?
• Do you know of primary and secondary sources that you can use as a way to find other information?
• Is the information about your topic located in popular, trade, or scholarly resources?
• What keyword or search terms might you want to use?

Review existing literature reviews in your field to help you:

• Get a sense of the types of themes you might want to look for in your own research
• Identify ways to organize your literature review
• See how others in your field have managed literature reviews  

You can put the word “review” in your search engine along with your search terms to find review online or in a database. The bibliography or reference section of sources you’ve already read are also excellent entry points into your own research. 

Database searching is an iterative process. This means that you will repeat it several times because as you search you are learning about your topic, including keywords and concepts.

WNE has research guides and databases relevant to many fields of study. You can also schedule an appointment with a librarian for one-on-one research help. 

As you explore WNE's databases, try the following:

• Repeat your search in different databases to find additional results
• Start by searching broadly to develop an understanding of what is out there, what terms are accurate and helpful, etc.,
• Keep a log or take notes of where you search, what search terms you use, etc. 
• Keep track of your sources with a citation management tool like Zotero
• Use citation searching to track how scholars interact with, and build upon, previous research
• Mine the references cited section of each relevant source for additional key sources 
• Find sources that are representative of the conversation surrounding your topic. Look for relationships, major themes, and any critical gaps in the research expressed in the work

As you research, ask questions about currently published literature: 

• Has anyone done similar research? If so, how is it different in method or scope? 
• What is unique about my research? 
• Are there limitations to my research that I must be aware of as I move forward? 
• Is the literature I have found appropriate for my audience, scope, and purpose?
• Is there an abundance or lack of evidence? 

Read your sources critically. Pay attention to the following:

• Who is the author? What are their qualifications? 
• What is the author’s purpose? To offer advice, make practical suggestions, solve a specific problem, to critique, or clarify?
• Note the experts in the field. Are there specific names/labs that are frequently cited?
• Pay attention to methodology. Is it sound? What testing procedures, subjects, and materials were used?
• Note conflicting theories, methodologies and results. Are there any assumptions being made by most/some researchers?
• Theories: Have they evolved overtime?
• Evaluate and synthesize the findings and conclusions. How does this study contribute to your project?

Divide the available resources that pertain to your research into categories reflecting their roles in addressing your research question. Possible ways to categorize resources include organization by: 

• Chronology 
• Theme
• Trend
• Methodology 
• Theoretical/philosophical approach 

Regardless of the division, each category should be accompanied by thorough discussions and explanations of strengths and weaknesses, value to the overall survey, and comparisons with similar sources.

Use the following guidelines to prepare an outline of the main points you want to make:

• Synthesize previous research on the topic
• Aim to include both summary and synthesis
• Include literature that supports your research question as well as that which offers a different perspective
• Avoid relying on one author or publication too heavily

Introduction – Your introduction should convey the following: 

• Define the topic of the literature review, including any terminology 
• Introduce the central theme and organization of the literature review
• Summarize the state of research on the topic
• Frame the literature review with your research question

Body – The body is where you relate the story the sources you have consulted tell.

• Focus on ways to have the body of literature tell its own story. Do not add your own interpretations at this point
• Look for patterns and find ways to tie the pieces together
• Summarize instead of quote
• Weave the points together rather than list summaries of each source
• Include the most important sources, not everything you have read

Conclusion – Summarize how your interests align with the conversation at large.

• Summarize the review of the literature 
• Identify areas of further research on the topic
• Connect the review with your research
• Use the conclusion to speculate on what research is needed going forward

Format - Be sure to follow the format and style guidelines for your discipline.

• Avoid plagiarism by properly citing your sources
• Check out the library's How to Cite guide for additional information.