Literature Review

LITERATURE REVIEW
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Dr.Wafa A.K.Abbas
LITERATURE REVIEW
Conducting a review of relevant literature is a challenging, enlightening experience. Through the literature review, the researcher generates a picture of what is known about a particular situation and the knowledge gaps that exist in the situation. The review of literature bridges the gap between the problem statement and the research sub-problems and lays a foundation for the research plan.
Relevant literature refers to those sources that are pertinent or highly important in providing the in-depth knowledge needed to study a selected problem (Batey, 1977). The review of relevant literature is a three-step process:
(1) locating a variety of relevant sources,
(2) critiquing those sources for significant information and
(3) generating a written report of the knowledge gained.
Purposes of Literature Review
The primary purpose for reviewing relevant literature is to gain a broad background or understanding of the information that is available related to the research problem of interest. This background enables the researcher to build upon the works of others which is essential since major breakthroughs or discoveries of new information in a field are always related to previous works (Kaplan, 1964).
The researcher s background of the literature should include familiarity with what work (theoretical and empirical) has been done concerning a specific research problem, what is considered to be the current knowledge of the problem and what further research is needed.
The literature review will promote the identification of feasible research purposes and sub problems and will direct the development of methodologically sound studies.
There are specific purposes for reviewing the literature, depending on whether the study is quantitative or qualitative.
Purpose of Literature Review in Quantitative Studies:
The review of relevant literature in quantitative research influences the development of several steps in the research process.
In all types of quantitative studies, the literature review is conducted for the same purposes .
The literature review is instigated at the beginning of the research process and continues throughout the development of the research plan and proposal.
The researcher gains essential information from existing studies and theories through a literature review.
This information is organized and presented in the review of literature section of the research proposal and the final research report.
The design selected for a study should reflect an understanding of the designs used by other researchers who have studied the same or similar problems.
The researcher examines the designs of previous studies to identify the designs that might be used. Reviewing relevant studies can also reveal promising measurement tool(s) and provide useful information to increase the effectiveness of data collection and analysis.
Lastly, the findings from previous studies are a basis for comparison when interpreting the findings from the proposed study.
Figure 1: Purpose of the Literature Review in Quantitative Studies
? Clarify the research topic
? Clarify the research problem
? Verify the significance of the research problem
? Specify the purpose of the study
? Identify relevant studies
? Identify relevant theories
? Clarify research subproblems
? Develop definitions of major variables
? Identify limitations and assumptions
? Select a research design
? Identify instruments or tool(s) of measurement
? Direct data collection and analysis
? interpret findings
Sources of Literature
? Searching the literature involves identifying and locating sources. Conducting an organized search of the literature involves four steps:
? clarifying a research topic;
? searching the catalog, indexes, abstracts and
? locating relevant sources,-
? The ways to locate relevant sources will not be addressed in this section as it differs from one library to another.
? Clarifying a Research Topic: A researcher selects a topic for study and then proceeds to clarify and narrow that
topic by identifying synonymous terms and appropriate subheadings for the topic.
? Synonymous terms can he found in thesauruses, such as the International Nursing Index s Nursing Thesaurus.
? Frequently, dictionaries and encyclopedias are helpful in identifying relevant synonymous terms and subheadings.
? Searching the Catalog Indexes, Abstracts and Bibliographies:
? The research topic, synonymous terms and subheadings identified are used to guide the search of the catalog listings, indexes, abstracts and bibliographies for relevant sources.
? The search for relevant sources starts with the most recent sources and works backward until the sources related to a specific topic have been exhausted.
? Catalog: The catalog identifies what is available in the library; these listings may be on cards (card catalog), in a book or on an on-line computer.
? The catalog listings include books, monographs, conference proceedings, audiovisuals, theses and dissertations.
? Most books also include extensive bibliographies that might direct the researcher to other relevant sources.
? Indexes: In an index, a number of sources are referenced under different divisions and subdivisions.
? An index provides assistance in identifying journal articles and other publications that contain a topic that is part of the index s headings.
? One of the key indexes used by nursing researchers is the Cumulative Index to Nursing & Allied Health Literature.