Research Literature

1. WRITING LITERATURE
REVIEW
THEORATICAL AND EMPIRICAL

2. WHY LITERATURE REVIEW
• First, for you to find a gap, an opportunity to make an original
contribution
• Secondly, for the reader to see relevance of your work and to lay a
foundation that will justify your work
• The aim of literature review is to show what is known and highlighting
what is unknown.

3. PURPOSE OF LITERATURE REVIEW
• The main purpose is to help you to develop a good understanding and
insight into relevant previous research and the trends that have emerged.
• The purpose of your literature review is not to provide a summary of
everything that has been written on your research topic, but to review the
most relevant and significant research on your topic.
• To help you to refine further your research questions and objectives
• To help you avoid simply repeating work that has been done already
• To sample current opinions in newspapers, professional and trade journals,
thereby gaining insights into the aspects of your research questions and
objectives that are considered newsworthy

4. PURPOSE OF LITERATURE REVIEW
• Finding evidence in the academic discourse to establish a need for the
proposed research
• Helps to establish a theoretical framework upon which to base the
research
• Indicates that the researcher is knowledgeable about the topic
• Justifies the need for your research
• Becoming familiar with the subject area of interest

5. STEPS IN WRITING LITERATURE
1. Formulate the research question or hypothesis that you want to research- The
research question is the narrow topic on which you are writing your literature
review. From any topic comes dozens or hundreds of possible research
question
2. Describe the context of your research – to show how the various research studies
relate to each other and address issues that have a bearing on your own research
project.
3. Present your critical evaluation of the findings of these studies.
4. Outline and justify your choice of the relevant theories, methodology and
research tools and instruments that you want to use in your research.
5. Identify new ways in which to interpret previous research or resolve conficts
between previous studies.
6. Identify the gap or the unanswered question that your research will address or
a theory against which you want to test a hypothesis.

6. THEORATICAL (NON-SYSTEMATICAL)
LITERATURE REVIEW
• The theoretical literature review is really more for setting up the context for your
own study.
• The theoretical framework is the structure that can hold or support a theory of
your research study. The theoretical framework introduces and describes the
theory that explains why the research problem under study exists.
• The theoretical framework is the structure that can hold or support a theory of a
research study. The theoretical framework introduces and describes the theory
which explains why the research problem under study exists.
• The theoretical and conceptual framework explains the path of a research and
grounds it firmly in theoretical constructs.
• The overall aim of the two frameworks is to make research findings more
meaningful, acceptable to the theoretical constructs in the research field and
ensures generalizability.

7. THEORATICAL LITERATURE REVIEW
• They assist in stimulating research while ensuring the extension of
knowledge by providing both direction and impetus to the research
inquiry.
• It is a guide for a research (Grant & Osanloo, 2014). It is a framework
based on an existing theory in a field of inquiry that is related and/or
reflects the hypothesis of a study.
• Likewise, the theoretical framework guides the researcher so that
s/he would not deviate from the confines of the accepted theories to
make his/her final contribution scholarly and academic.

8. THE IMPORTANCE OF THEORATICAL REVIEW
• It provides the structure in showing how a researcher defines his/her study
philosophically, epistemologically, methodology and analytically (Grant &
Osanloo, 2014).
• Theoretical framework assist researchers in situating and contextualizing
formal theories into their studies as a guide. This positions their studies in
scholarly and academic fashion(Ravitch & Carl, 2016)
• Moreover, the theoretical framework is linked to the research problem
under study. Therefore, it guides a researcher’s choice of research design
and data analysis plan.
• The theoretical framework guides and should resonate with every aspect of
the research process from the definition of the problem, literature survey,
methodology, presentation and discussion of the findings as well as the
conclusions that are drawn.

9. HOW TO SELECT A SUITABLE THEORATICAL
FRAMEWORK REVIEW
• The selection of a theoretical framework requires a thorough
understanding of the problem, purpose, significance and research
questions of a study.
• The chosen theoretical framework must accentuate the purpose and
importance of the study dissertation (Grant & Osanloo, 2014).
• The researcher may critique, develop and/or expand the theory that
served as a guide for his/her study vis-à-vis the findings gleaned from
the study (Grant & Osanloo, 2014). Munhall and Chenail (2008)
contend that this critique is often carried out in the data analysis
stage of the research before the final conclusions of the study are
drawn.

10. HOW TO SELECT A SUITABLE THEORATICAL
FRAMEWORK REVIEW
• The authors have succinctly put them into questions that must be reliably
answered by the researcher to convince him/her that the selection of a
theory or theories is appropriate for a particular study.
• These questions are:
1. What discipline will the theory be applied to?
2. Is the theory to be selected well developed with many theoretical constructs?
3. Have specific concepts or theoretical principles been selected to meet the
objectives of the study?
4. Does the problem of the study, the purpose and importance of the study correlate
with the theoretical framework?
5. Can the theory be used hand in hand with the research questions for the study?
6. Does the data analysis plan agree with the selected theoretical framework?
7. Does the theoretical framework undergird the conclusions and recommendations
based on the data analysis?

11. EMPIRICAL (SYSTEMATICAL) LITERATURE
REVIEW
• An empirical literature review is more commonly called a systematic
literature review and it examines past empirical studies to answer a
particular research question.
• Empirical literature reviews are researches based on experience and
observation in previous research findings, rather than on systematic
logic.
• Empirical literature review is based on the findings of original
research like surveys, studies, scientific experiments and the like.

12. PURPOSE OF EMPIRICAL REVIEW
• Empirical literature is used to validate the target and methods you
have chosen for your proposed research.
• Empirical literature consist of books and scholarly journals that
provide research examples of populations or settings similar to your
own, as well as community resources to document the need for your
proposed research.
• The empirical literature review does not present new primary
scholarship.

13. SOURCES OF LITERATURE REVIEW
Research:
• Research information is found in peer-reviewed journals. Journal
articles are written by researchers who conduct an experiment and
then report on the results.
• They are easier to locate than professional literature as they are
better covered by popular literature.
• Journals are a vital literature source for any research
• Journal articles can be from refereed academic journals (evaluated by
academic peers prior to publication) or professional journals.

14. SOURCES OF LITERATURE REVIEW
Professional:
• Professional information is found in trade magazines. Professional
literature is written by people who are in the field, and who have
something valuable to share with their peers.
• They include published sources such as reports and some central and local
government publications such as the White Papers and planning
documents.
• They also include unpublished manuscript sources such as letters, memos
and committees meetings that may be analysed as data in their own right
• Since professional literature sources can be difficult to trace, they are
sometimes referred as “grey literature”

15. SOURCES OF LITERATURE REVIEW
Popular:
• Popular information is the most common type, designed for a huge
audience
• Think of glossy magazines, with lots of adversements and eye candy.
Blogs, newspapers, and YouTube videos are all popular types of
information
• When research studies are reported in the popular literature, the
research is misapplied or misreported about 50% of the time.