A literature review is a summary and synthesis of scholarly research on a specific topic. Preparing a literature review is a cyclical process.
A literature review can:
- Situate research you are doing within a scholarly conversation
- Explain where current research stands on a topic and what directions it might take in the future
- Show that you have examined the breadth of knowledge and can 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?
Unlike an annotated bibliography, which is a list of sources with short descriptions, a literature review synthesizes sources into a summary. A literature review might:
- Give a new interpretation of old material
- Combine new and old interpretations
- Trace the intellectual progression of the field, including major debates
- Advise the reader on the most pertinent or relevant aspects of the topic
