'A Literature Review' provided by Central Queensland University (Australia)
Trying to help researchers compile a literature review, the scholars from Central Queensland University in Australia provided information to understand its purpose, search for information, analysis; synthesis of the
literature and writing the review itself.
They begin with the definition of a literature review. According to them, it is a means to explore and evaluate the material which was earlier written on a particular topic. It can be a framework for a following investigation, for instance, a thesis. And, finally, they oblige a literature review to ask questions and define areas which need to be study.
Then they say that it is dependent on one's academic level how a review will function and what it will look like. Unfortunately, they do not clarify the difference between various types of a literature review on the page, but give a link to the presentation where everything is thoroughly explained.
The next paragraph slightly continues the previous point and is dedicated to what a review could be. The authors distinguish between descriptive and focused totally on a topic, analytical and summative, and an analytical synthesis covering all known literature on the problem.
In the continuation, they define 5 major types of a literature review. These are a narrative or traditional literature review, an annotated bibliography, a systematic literature review, a systematic quantitative literature review, and a systematic review. Each of them has its own specific features, but all of them are somehow connected and similar to each other. The first type overviews the most important existing works on a topic, critisizes them, and approves the researcher's knowledge of the topic. The second type is a list of summarized and evaluated citations. The third type is also a critical estimation but, unlike previously mentioned, defines a criteria for collecting sources and has a synthesis of included studies. The fourth method is vaguely clarified but it is a synthesis of a traditional review and meta-analysis which results in a accurate and credible assessment. The name of the last type reveals its essence -- there exists a method to select and evaluate primary papers -- as a result, it excludes author's subjectivity and makes a review reproducible and updatable.
The article manages to give an information about a literature review, its functions and types, to enable researchers to write it properly. A researcher can use it as a reliable manual for compiling and assessing primary papers.
Then they say that it is dependent on one's academic level how a review will function and what it will look like. Unfortunately, they do not clarify the difference between various types of a literature review on the page, but give a link to the presentation where everything is thoroughly explained.
The next paragraph slightly continues the previous point and is dedicated to what a review could be. The authors distinguish between descriptive and focused totally on a topic, analytical and summative, and an analytical synthesis covering all known literature on the problem.
In the continuation, they define 5 major types of a literature review. These are a narrative or traditional literature review, an annotated bibliography, a systematic literature review, a systematic quantitative literature review, and a systematic review. Each of them has its own specific features, but all of them are somehow connected and similar to each other. The first type overviews the most important existing works on a topic, critisizes them, and approves the researcher's knowledge of the topic. The second type is a list of summarized and evaluated citations. The third type is also a critical estimation but, unlike previously mentioned, defines a criteria for collecting sources and has a synthesis of included studies. The fourth method is vaguely clarified but it is a synthesis of a traditional review and meta-analysis which results in a accurate and credible assessment. The name of the last type reveals its essence -- there exists a method to select and evaluate primary papers -- as a result, it excludes author's subjectivity and makes a review reproducible and updatable.
The article manages to give an information about a literature review, its functions and types, to enable researchers to write it properly. A researcher can use it as a reliable manual for compiling and assessing primary papers.
Hello Sasha,
ОтветитьУдалитьthank you for such a detailed overview of this resouce. I have found it very-well written and also clear from the point of vew of its contentand organisation. Do you think you now have a better idea about different types of literature review and a variety of approaches to writing it? Do you have some further questions regarding writring a literature review and what its components are