1. What is a “literature review”?
• Short definition
– A synthesis and analysis of the published research
in the discipline that is relevant to your argument.
• A literature review is NOT
– A long list of the articles and books you read for
your research.

2. What makes a good literature review?
1. Relevant to your argument.
2. Demonstrates how scholars, ideas, and data
connect. Even better? Points out connections in
the literature that others have missed.
3. Identifies areas for further research. These gaps
might be theoretical, applications of data, new data
yet to be gathered.
4. And…sets the stage for your contribution

3. Literature Review: Checklist
 What are the primary journals and databases for me to
search for information on my research topic?
 Who are predominant scholars? How do they agree or
disagree with each other?
 What are the terms I need to know to thoroughly
research and write about this topic?
 What data and evidence are used most frequently for
this research area?
 Are there gaps, inconsistencies, or emerging new areas
of scholarship?
 Have I captured the breadth of scholarship relevant to
this research area?
 How has research changed over time?
See “Writing Up Research” Language Centre, Asian Institute of Technology , UNC’s Writing Center , and
UMD’s Helen-Mongan Rallis.

4. This feels big. How on earth do I start?
1. Reference and scholarly books
– Background and broad historic review of your
topic
– Critical references to authors, journals, data
2. Literature reviews
– Review of the published literature in the field
3. Broad scan in multidisciplinary databases
– Consciously skim for data, scholars, journals,
dates, terminology