How Do I Do a Lit Review in Social Psychology
Writing a Literature Review
When writing a research paper on a specific topic, you will oftentimes demand to include an overview of any prior research that has been conducted on that topic. For example, if your research paper is describing an experiment on fear conditioning, then y'all will probably demand to provide an overview of prior enquiry on fear workout. That overview is typically known equally a literature review.
Please note that a full-length literature review commodity may be suitable for fulfilling the requirements for the Psychology B.S. Caste Research Paper . For further details, please check with your faculty advisor.
Different Types of Literature Reviews
Literature reviews come in many forms. They tin can be office of a enquiry newspaper, for example as role of the Introduction section. They tin can be one chapter of a doctoral dissertation. Literature reviews tin can also "stand up lone" equally dissever articles past themselves. For case, some journals such as Annual Review of Psychology, Psychological Message, and others typically publish full-length review articles. Similarly, in courses at UCSD, y'all may exist asked to write a research paper that is itself a literature review (such as, with an teacher's permission, in fulfillment of the B.S. Degree Inquiry Newspaper requirement). Alternatively, you lot may be expected to include a literature review as part of a larger research paper (such equally part of an Honors Thesis).
Literature reviews tin can be written using a variety of different styles. These may differ in the fashion prior research is reviewed besides as the way in which the literature review is organized. Examples of stylistic variations in literature reviews include:
- Summarization of prior work vs. critical evaluation. In some cases, prior inquiry is simply described and summarized; in other cases, the author compares, contrasts, and may even critique prior research (for example, discusses their strengths and weaknesses).
- Chronological vs. categorical and other types of organization. In some cases, the literature review begins with the oldest inquiry and advances until it concludes with the latest enquiry. In other cases, enquiry is discussed by category (such as in groupings of closely related studies) without regard for chronological social club. In yet other cases, research is discussed in terms of opposing views (such as when different research studies or researchers disagree with i another).
Overall, all literature reviews, whether they are written every bit a function of a larger work or as separate articles unto themselves, have a mutual feature: they do not nowadays new research; rather, they provide an overview of prior research on a specific topic.
How to Write a Literature Review
When writing a literature review, it can exist helpful to rely on the post-obit steps. Please note that these procedures are not necessarily only for writing a literature review that becomes role of a larger commodity; they can also be used for writing a full-length article that is itself a literature review (although such reviews are typically more detailed and exhaustive; for more information please refer to the Further Resources section of this folio).
Steps for Writing a Literature Review
i. Identify and define the topic that you will be reviewing.
The topic, which is commonly a enquiry question (or problem) of some kind, needs to be identified and defined as clearly equally possible. You need to have an thought of what you volition exist reviewing in lodge to finer search for references and to write a coherent summary of the enquiry on it. At this
ii. Acquit a literature search.
Employ a range of keywords to search databases such equally PsycINFO and any others that may contain relevant articles. You should focus on peer-reviewed, scholarly articles. Published books may also exist helpful, but continue in listen that peer-reviewed manufactures are widely considered to be the "gilded standard" of scientific enquiry. Read through titles and abstracts, select and obtain articles (that is, download, re-create, or impress them out), and save your searches as needed. For more data nearly this footstep, please see the Using Databases and Finding Scholarly References section of this website.
3. Read through the research that you lot accept found and take notes.
Absorb equally much data equally you can. Read through the manufactures and books that you have found, and every bit you exercise, take notes. The notes should include anything that volition be helpful in advancing your own thinking about the topic and in helping you lot write the literature review (such as key points, ideas, or fifty-fifty page numbers that index primal information). Some references may turn out to be more helpful than others; you may notice patterns or striking contrasts between different sources
4. Organize your notes and thoughts; create an outline.
At this stage, you are close to writing the review itself. However, it is ofttimes helpful to commencement reflect on all the reading that you have done. What patterns stand out? Do the different sources converge on a consensus? Or non? What unresolved questions still remain? You should await over your notes (it may besides be helpful to reorganize them), and as you do, to think nearly how you will present this research in your literature review. Are y'all going to summarize or critically evaluate? Are yous going to employ a chronological or
five. Write the literature review itself and edit and revise equally needed.
The final stage involves writing. When writing, go on in heed that literature reviews are generally characterized by a summary manner in which prior research is described sufficiently to explain disquisitional findings but does not include a high level of detail (if readers want to larn almost all the specific details of a study, so they tin look upward the references that you cite and read the original articles themselves). Nonetheless, the degree of emphasis that is given to individual studies may vary (more or less particular may exist warranted depending on how critical or unique a given report was). After you have written
half dozen. Comprise the literature review into your research paper draft.
After the literature review is consummate, you lot should incorporate information technology into your research paper (if you are writing the review as ane component of a larger newspaper). Depending on the stage at which your newspaper is at, this may involve merging your literature review into a partially complete Introduction section, writing the rest of the newspaper around the literature review, or other processes.
Further Tips for Writing a Literature Review
Full-length literature reviews
- Many full-length literature review articles use a 3-part structure: Introduction (where the topic is identified and any trends or major problems in the literature are introduced), Body (where the studies that contain the literature on that topic are discussed), and Word or Conclusion (where major patterns and points are discussed and the general land of what is known nearly the topic is summarized)
Literature reviews every bit part of a larger paper
- An "express method" of writing a literature review for a research paper is as follows: start, write a
1 paragraph description of each article that y'all read. Second, choose how you lot will order all the paragraphs and combine them in one certificate. Third, add together transitions between the paragraphs, as well equally an introductory and last paragraph.1
- A literature review that is part of a larger research newspaper typically does non have to exist exhaustive. Rather, information technology should contain near or all of the significant studies almost a inquiry topic but non tangential or loosely related ones.ii By and large, literature reviews should exist sufficient for the reader to empathize the major issues and key findings well-nigh a inquiry topic. You may however need to confer with your teacher or editor to determine how comprehensive you need to be.
Benefits of Literature Reviews
By summarizing prior research on a topic, literature reviews have multiple benefits. These include:
- Literature reviews help readers understand what is known about a topic without having to find and read through multiple sources.
- Literature reviews assistance "set the phase" for afterward reading about new research on a given topic (such as if they are placed in the Introduction of a larger research paper). In other words, they provide helpful background and context.
- Literature reviews can as well aid the writer learn almost a given topic while in the procedure of preparing the review itself. In the human action of research and writing the literature review, the author gains expertise on the topic
.
Downloadable Resources
- How to Write APA Manner Enquiry Papers (a comprehensive guide) [PDF]
- Tips for Writing APA Way Enquiry Papers (a brief summary) [PDF]
- Example APA Style Research Newspaper (for B.S. Degree – literature review) [PDF]
Further Resources
How-To Videos
- Writing Research Paper Videos
UCSD
- UCSD Library Psychology Research Guide: Literature Reviews
External Resource
- Developing and Writing a Literature Review from North Carolina A&T Country University
- Example of a Short Literature Review from York College CUNY
- How to Write a Review of Literature from UW-Madison
- Writing a Literature Review from UC Santa Cruz
See Also
- Pautasso, Grand. (2013). Ten Simple Rules for Writing a Literature Review. PLoS Computational Biology, 9(seven), e1003149.
doi : 1371/journal.pcbi.1003149
References
1Ashton, W. Writing a short literature review . [PDF]
iiCarver, L. (2014). Writing the research newspaper [Workshop].
Prepared past Southward. C. Pan for UCSD Psychology
Dorsum to pinnacle
Source: https://psychology.ucsd.edu/undergraduate-program/undergraduate-resources/academic-writing-resources/writing-research-papers/writing-lit-review.html
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