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Health Education & Community Health Research Guide

The Literature Review Explained

Definition of a Literature Review

Machi & McEvoy (2012) define the literature review as follows:

A literature review is a written argument that promotes a thesis position by building a case from credible evidence based on
previous research. It provides context and the background about the current knowledge of the topic and lays out a logical case
to defend the thesis position taken. (pp. 4-5)

Reference

Machi, L. A. & McEvoy, B. T. (2012). The literature review: Six steps to success. (2nd edition). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.

"How to Write a Literature Review/What is a Literature Review? Infographic" - Emerald Publishing

This resource appears in Montana State University, Billings Library's Lit Review Research Guide and it seems to have been originally created by Emerald Publishing Group although the original file is difficult to track down.

Machi & McEvoy (2012) distinguish between two kinds of literature reviews

Basic Literature Review

  • Usually proposes a thesis concerning the current level or state of knowledge about a topic
  • Often begins with a study question which is further narrowed to a research topic

Advanced Literature Review

  • In addition to what the basic literature review covers, the advanced literature review goes further. Instead of just presenting and evaluating the existing knowledge of a topic as its thesis, an advanced literature review looks for gaps or problematic areas within that knowledge.
  • According to Machi & McEvoy (2012), "Its purpose is to question the current state of knowledge about a topic in order to define an area for new research" (p. 3).

Another Way of Considering Literature Reviews

  • Descriptive - Like an annotated bibliography with additional comments that highlight themes and trends
  • Critical - Assessment of existing literature in a field to point out gaps

References

How to write a literature review. What is a literature review? (n. d.). Emerald Publishing. Retrieved September 8, 2021, from https://libguides.msubillings.edu/litreview

Machi, L. A. & McEvoy, B. T. (2012). The literature review: Six steps to success. (2nd edition). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.

 

Staying Organized

Organizing Your Source Materials

  • Save electronic copies of your sources (either as pdf files or permalinks) in one folder or a series of related folders.
  • Obtain drafts of reference list entries (citations) for every source you think you may use at the time you locate the source.
  • If you need print copies of your source materials, keep these together in a physical file folder or envelope.

Organizing Your Notes

General tips
  • Remember that when writing a literature review, you will be working with a large number of sources and it will be crucial to keep track of which information comes from each source.
  • It is not uncommon that you will find (and cite) more than one source document in support of a single statement or position you argue within your literature review. (Typically, the more sources that you can use to back up your ideas, the better.)
Specific Suggestions

Technological Tools

  • Zotero -- free, open source software program that allows you to save source materials from across multiple databases as well as the open Web. Also includes citation generator, note-taking tools, and the ability to upload additional documents
  • Mendeley--similar to Zotero; there is at least some level of free access

Organizing Your Draft - How to Present the Researched Information

Learning Theories

Need to Reference Learning Theories: Search or Browse the Following Resources

Pink sky with branches and shadow of bird behind title: Educational Learning TheoriesEducational Learning Theories, 2nd Edition: This open textbook was developed by Zhou & Brown (2017) from Dalton College as part of Galileo, a repository for open educational resources created through OpenGeorgia. This text includes twelve chapters, many illustrations of concepts, and reference lists at the end of each chapter

  • Search by an educational theorist's name or by the name of the theory you are seeking information about.
  • Pay attention to the author of the results you find. JSTOR can be very useful in finding primary source documents written by specific theorists. If possible, you want to cite the theorist directly rather than use a secondary interpretation of the theorist's work.