Literature Reviews

A crucial part of the research process is the literature review. Not all researchers address a literature review in their published article, but it is a foundational piece to the research that is conducted and should have a clear presence in the final product. As I read through journal articles for LRNT 502, I was a bit overwhelmed with having to determine if a literature review was sufficient and/or appropriate. However, I’ve come to realize that my ability to do this is a reflection of my knowledge on a subject. For topics that I’m unfamiliar with, the best I can do is to identify the literature review itself and assess the quality based on the researcher’s comments regarding types of research that have previously been conducted and how the current research fits in. I think the better a literature review is articulated, the better it probably was conducted and understood. Rachel Dunifon (n.d.) states that “the overall goal of the literature review is to provide the reader with an integrative summary of other research findings and the questions that remain unanswered or require further research” (p. 2). The North Carolina State University provides a helpful tutorial titled Literature Reviews: An Overview for Graduate Students that discusses the types and purpose of literature reviews and some strategies for conducting a literature review in the process of writing a research paper or thesis. References: Dunifon, R. (n.d.). How to read a research article. Retrieved from http://www.iith.ac.in/rsportal/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/How-to-Read-a-Research-Article.pdf North Carolina State University. (2009). Literature reviews: An overview for graduate students [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2d7y_r65HU