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Last updated on 2024年5月5日

What are the best practices for conducting a thorough literature review?

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Embarking on a literature review can be a daunting task, but it's a cornerstone of effective research and development. Whether you're a seasoned academic or a newcomer to the field, understanding the best practices for conducting a thorough literature review is crucial. It's not just about reading as many papers as you can; it's about strategically selecting, analyzing, and synthesizing the literature to build a solid foundation for your research project. This article will guide you through the key steps to ensure your literature review is comprehensive, methodical, and insightful.

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Dr. S Chand Rakesh Roshan, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor in Physics | Former Faculty Incharge (Section Head), Training and Placements (2017-2022) | SWAYAM…

1 Define Scope

Your literature review should begin with a clear definition of its scope. Determine what topics, time frame, and types of literature will be included. This helps to narrow down the vast sea of available information to a manageable and relevant corpus. Be specific about your research question or hypothesis and use it as a compass to guide your literature exploration. Remember, a well-defined scope ensures that you stay on track and focused on literature that directly pertains to your research objectives.

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Arun Purohit

Innovating Quality in Life Sciences: Expert in Operations, Audits, and Project Management. Independant Consultant & Lead Auditor | Pharma Industry strategic leader, QMS project manager & turnaround expert |
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Clearly define the research question or topic you want to explore through your literature review. This will help guide your search and focus your efforts on relevant sources.

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2 Search Strategy

Developing an effective search strategy is essential for uncovering relevant literature. Utilize multiple databases and search engines to ensure comprehensive coverage. Craft search terms that are both broad enough to capture all potential studies and specific enough to exclude irrelevant ones. Boolean operators like 'AND', 'OR', and 'NOT' can help refine your searches. Keep a record of your search terms and the databases used; this not only aids in replicability but also ensures that you can revisit your search strategy if needed.

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Fernanda Maria de Paula Miranda

Mestre em Tecnologia de Produtos e Processos | Bacharel em Química Tecnológica | Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento | Análises químicas
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The parameters in a review that are important to define with your research group include: the time period to be searched (for example: articles published between 2020 and 2024), when the searches will be conducted (for example: articles will be searched between January 2024 and March 2024), the keywords and the search engines (Google Scholar, Scielo) that will be used, whether any university library resources will be utilized, and the total number of articles that will be reviewed. Depending on the theme of the review, there may be other important factors to highlight. If you are going to publish your literature review as a review article, all of this should be described in the methodology section.

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Arun Purohit

Innovating Quality in Life Sciences: Expert in Operations, Audits, and Project Management. Independant Consultant & Lead Auditor | Pharma Industry strategic leader, QMS project manager & turnaround expert |
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Use a combination of search strategies to ensure comprehensive coverage of the literature. This may include keyword searches, subject headings, Boolean operators (AND, OR, NOT), truncation, and proximity searching.

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3 Evaluate Sources

Critical evaluation of sources is paramount. Not all literature is created equal; you must discern the quality and relevance of each piece. Check the credibility of the authors, the rigor of their methodology, and the impact of their findings. Peer-reviewed journals are typically a good indicator of quality, but don't discount seminal works or influential theories that may come from less conventional sources. Your aim is to build an authoritative base of literature upon which your research can stand.

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Arun Purohit

Innovating Quality in Life Sciences: Expert in Operations, Audits, and Project Management. Independant Consultant & Lead Auditor | Pharma Industry strategic leader, QMS project manager & turnaround expert |
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Screen search results to identify relevant sources based on title, abstract, and keywords. Evaluate the credibility, relevance, and quality of each source using criteria such as author credentials, publication venue, methodology, and peer review status.

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4 Organize Findings

Organization is key to synthesizing your findings. Create a system to categorize the literature based on themes, methodologies, or chronological order. This will help you identify patterns, gaps, and the evolution of thought in your area of study. Consider using reference management software to keep track of your sources and make note-taking more efficient. A well-organized literature review lays the groundwork for a clear and logical presentation of your research.

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5 Synthesize Literature

Synthesis is where you weave individual pieces of literature into a cohesive narrative. It's not just about summarizing each source; it's about integrating them to show how they relate to each other and to your research question. Highlight agreements, contradictions, and gaps in the existing body of work. This step is where you demonstrate your analytical skills and contribute to the ongoing scholarly conversation by providing new insights or perspectives.

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6 Update Regularly

Remember that research is a dynamic field; new studies are constantly being published. It's important to update your literature review regularly, especially if your research spans over a lengthy period. This ensures that your review remains current and incorporates the latest findings, which can be critical in fast-moving fields. Set aside time periodically to scan for new literature and integrate relevant additions into your review.

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7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?

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Dr. S Chand Rakesh Roshan, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor in Physics | Former Faculty Incharge (Section Head), Training and Placements (2017-2022) | SWAYAM NPTEL Coordinator| Former Head, Dept. of Physics (2012-2022)|@ RGUKT Basar, India|| Linkedin Top Voice
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'Effective Search - Literature' :: The basis of an efficient literature review lies in a precisely defined research query. Finding relevant sources and narrowing your search might be a real challenge without a well-defined research query. Consequently, you must carefully craft a targeted and specific domain. The first step in doing thorough searches is to determine which databases and search engines are most applicable to your field of study. To find a variety of articles and resources, use a search technique that includes keywords, synonyms, and related terms. To narrow your search and get more relevant results, try utilising sophisticated search capabilities like truncate and Boolean operators.

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What are the best practices for conducting a thorough literature review?

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1 Define Scope

2 Search Strategy

3 Evaluate Sources

4 Organize Findings

5 Synthesize Literature

6 Update Regularly

7 Here’s what else to consider

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