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DIFFERENTIATING LITERATURE REVIEW AND REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE (AND STUDIES)
DIFFERENTIATING LITERATURE REVIEW AND REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE (AND STUDIES)
After identifying independent and dependent variables, researchers must thoroughly review existing knowledge. This involves analyzing relevant research, noting published information, exploring related concepts, principles, and theories, and determining how to measure variables and design the study.
The literature review, an essential research activity (Cristobal & Cristobal, 2022), systematically locates, identifies, and analyzes documents related to the research topic. This process, which involves higher-order thinking skills (review, evaluation, synthesis), consolidates key ideas and assesses existing literature (Creswell, 2012) to place the study within the wider field of knowledge.
The resulting Review of Related Literature (RRL) or Review of Related Literature and Studies (RRLS), a key chapter in the manuscript (i.e., Chapter 2), provides an overview of the topic, identifies knowledge gaps, clarifies connections, and establishes the researcher's credibility by demonstrating mastery of the subject matter (Ramos et al., 2023).
VOCABULARY ENRICHMENT
VOCABULARY ENRICHMENT
literature (in the context of research): refers to a broader category encompassing all written works related to a topic.
studies (in the context of research): refer to specific research projects that have been conducted and documented. These are typically research articles published in academic journals, but can also include other types of research reports.
PURPOSES OF THE LITERATURE REVIEW
PURPOSES OF THE LITERATURE REVIEW
Defining and Refining the Research. The literature review explains the independent and dependent variables, helps choose the research design and methodology, and assesses whether the study is feasible based on the researcher's skills and available resources.
Establishing Research Justification and Significance. The literature review justifies the need for the study by providing historical context, identifying gaps in existing research, supporting the research hypothesis, and pointing out areas that need further investigation. It also shows how the study contributes to the existing body of knowledge.
Informing Research Design and Methodology. The literature review highlights the strengths and weaknesses of previous studies, helping shape the current study's design to avoid errors and build on earlier work. It also offers a framework for comparing results with existing findings.
Enhancing Researcher Understanding and Credibility. The literature review helps researchers learn from past studies, refine or direct the research focus, and build confidence by thoroughly understanding the topic. It also demonstrates the researcher's expertise in the field and the study's objectivity to other researchers.
Contextualizing the Research. The literature review gives researchers context by summarizing relevant studies and placing the current research within the larger academic conversation, highlighting inconsistencies, flaws, and gaps in existing knowledge. It also shows how the current research builds on and expands previous work.
CHARACTERISTICS OF A STRONG REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND STUDIES
CHARACTERISTICS OF A STRONG REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND STUDIES
A strong review of related literature and studies has the following characteristics:
Provides a comprehensive overview of the existing body of knowledge
Contextualizes the current research project and articulates its significance
Synthesizes existing research, highlighting agreements, disagreements, and gaps while proposing new hypotheses and future research directions
Evaluates sources, identifies relevant research, and offers insightful analysis of the findings
Demonstrates the researcher's expertise
FINDING THE RIGHT INFORMATION: IDENTIFYING RELEVANT KEYWORDS AND SEARCH STRATEGIES
FINDING THE RIGHT INFORMATION: IDENTIFYING RELEVANT KEYWORDS AND SEARCH STRATEGIES
Brainstorming. Begin by brainstorming a list of keywords related to the research problem.
Think about synonyms, broader terms, narrower terms, and related concepts.
Research Topic: Childhood Obesity
Initial Keyword: Obesity
Synonyms: Overweight, Excess weight
Broader Terms: Weight-related issues, Pediatric health
Narrower Terms: Childhood obesity interventions, Adolescent obesity, Early childhood obesity
Related Concepts: Physical activity, Nutrition, Sedentary behavior, Food environment
Use a thesaurus or review subject headings in relevant articles to broaden the list of keywords.
Research Topic: Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare
Initial Keyword: Artificial Intelligence
Thesaurus (Computer Science): Machine learning, Deep learning, Neural Networks
Subject Headings (from relevant articles): Medical informatics, Clinical decision support systems, Expert systems
Consider how various stakeholders or disciplines might discuss the topic, as this can uncover new keywords.
Research Topic: Social media and Political Polarization
Initial Keyword: Social Media
Political Science Perspective: Political discourse, Online activism, Echo chambers
Sociology Perspective: Social networks, Group dynamics, Online communities
Psychology Perspective: Cognitive biases, Attitude formation, Persuasion
Rephrase the research question as keyword phrases, like turning "the impact of social media" into "how does social media affect...".
Research Question: What is the effect of mindfulness meditation on stress levels in nurses?
Keyword Phrases:
Mindfulness meditation and stress reduction
Impact of mindfulness on nurse stress
Does meditation reduce stress in nurses?
Boolean Operators. Use Boolean operators like AND, OR, and NOT to make searches more precise.
2.1. AND: Find articles that include both keywords
2.2. OR: Find articles that include either keyword
2.3. NOT: Exclude articles that contain a specific keyword
Order of Operations (Parentheses). When combining multiple Boolean operators in a single search, the order in which they are processed matters. Using parentheses helps control this order, just like in math.
Example:
(cats OR felines) AND (behavior OR training)
This search will first find articles that mention either "cats" or "felines" and then narrow down those results to articles that also mention either "behavior" or "training". Without parentheses, the search engine might interpret the query differently, potentially leading to less relevant results.
Combining Operators for Complex Searches. Feel free to combine AND, OR, and NOT in a single search to create highly specific queries.
Example:
(social media OR online platforms) AND (teenagers OR adolescents) NOT (cyberbullying)
This example looks for articles about social media use among teenagers, but excludes articles that focus on cyberbullying.
Proximity Operators. Some databases include proximity operators (e.g., NEAR, WITHIN) that let the researcher specify how close two keywords should be in the text. This can help find articles where the keywords are discussed together.
Example:
"climate change" NEAR/5 "public opinion"
This search would find articles where the phrase "climate change" appears within five words of "public opinion."
Phrase Searching. Use quotation marks to search for an exact phrase. This ensures that the keywords appear together in the specific order.
Example:
"social media marketing"
Iterative Refinement. Boolean searching is rarely a one-step process. Review the initial results and adjust your search strategy accordingly. If the search produces too many irrelevant results, the researcher should add more AND terms or use NOT to exclude unwanted topics. If too few results are found, try using OR to broaden the search or remove some AND terms.
Be careful not to over-constrain the search with too many AND and NOT operators, as this can cause the researcher to miss relevant articles.
Use NOT sparingly, as it can sometimes exclude relevant articles that mention the excluded term in a different context.
Truncation and Wildcards. Truncation and wildcards are search techniques used to expand the search and account for variations in spelling and word endings. They help retrieve more relevant results by including different forms of a word in a single search. Truncation and wildcard symbols can differ between databases and search engines. Always review the help section or advanced search options to find the correct symbols for the database you are using.
3.1. Truncation. Truncation involves using a symbol to replace the end of a word, allowing the search for all words that start with a specific root. The asterisk (*) is the most common truncation symbol, but others like $ may be used depending on the database.
Example:
Searching child* would find "child," "children," "childhood," "childlike," et cetera
Be careful when selecting the root; truncating too early (e.g., environ*) might produce irrelevant results like "envelope".
3.2. Wildcards. Wildcards use symbols to replace characters within a word to handle spelling variations. The question mark (?) is often used to replace a single character, but other symbols like # can also be used. Wildcards are helpful for different spellings (e.g., "colo?r" for "color" and "colour").
Example:
Searching wom?n finds both "woman" and "women"
Use truncation and wildcards in combination with Boolean operators (AND, OR, NOT), phrase searching, and parentheses to refine your searches.
Example:
(child* OR adolesc*) AND (obesity OR "excess weight")
Database Searching. Use online databases to find relevant articles.
4.1. PubMed. A database for biomedical and health-related research. It focuses heavily on medicine, nursing, dentistry, and preclinical sciences.
4.2. Web of Science. A multidisciplinary database, especially in the sciences. It is known for its citation indexing, which lets you track the impact of articles.
4.3. Scopus. A database for scientific, technical, medical, and social sciences literature. It provides citation analysis tools.
4.4. Google Scholar. A broad, multidisciplinary database helpful in finding grey literature and a wide range of scholarly sources.
IMPORTANCE OF A LITERATURE REVIEW IN THE RESEARCH PROCESS
IMPORTANCE OF A LITERATURE REVIEW IN THE RESEARCH PROCESS
Conducting a thorough literature review is not merely a preliminary step; it is the bedrock upon which sound research is built. It serves several critical functions that ensure the integrity, relevance, and impact of a research project.
Identifying Research Gaps. A well-executed literature review reveals areas where knowledge is lacking or where existing research is inconsistent. This helps pinpoint opportunities for original contributions.
Avoiding Redundancy and "Reinventing the Wheel". By understanding what research has already been conducted, the researcher can avoid duplicating efforts and focus on addressing unanswered questions.
Providing Context and Background. The literature review situates the research project within the broader academic conversation, providing readers with the necessary context to understand its significance.
Informing Methodology and Design. By examining methods used in previous studies, the researcher can learn from successes and failures, improve their own research plan, and choose suitable data collection and analysis techniques.
Establishing a Theoretical Framework. The literature review helps identify and integrate relevant theories and concepts that can inform the research questions and provide a lens through which to interpret the findings.
Justifying the Significance of the Research. By highlighting the importance of the study and its potential to add to the existing body of knowledge, the literature review enhances the research proposal. It boosts its chances of being funded or published.
Demonstrating Expertise and Credibility. A comprehensive literature review demonstrates the researcher’s understanding of the topic and establishes their credibility in the field.
Developing a Strong Research Question. A good literature review can help refine the initial research question, making it more focused, specific, and answerable.
Basically, the literature review is not just a summary of existing research; it is a critical analysis and synthesis that guides every part of the research process, from developing the research question to analyzing the research findings. By dedicating time and effort to perform a thorough literature review, a researcher can make sure that the research is relevant, rigorous, and influential.
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