Review articles

Review articles synthesize published information.

• Integrative

  • connects multiple organizational levels

  • integrates across sub-disciplines

• Forward looking

  • identifies existing challenges

• Strong conceptual foundation

  • lays bare the underlying framework

  • makes complex issues transparent

  • finds new connections among established ideas

  • provides clear definitions

  • bundles diverse topics into a few clear themes

  • introduces a new perspective

• Effective introduction to topic

  • good historical overview

  • can be understood by newcomers to the field

  • providing examples from a range of study systems helps many readers connect with their prior knowledge

  • effective use of analogies

• Clear communication

  • uses well-chosen examples from multiple sub-disciplines

  • well written

  • demonstrates ideas using concrete examples and/or actual data

  • contains strong visuals, such as visual abstracts and concept maps (Making Figures)