A literature review is an assessment of academic sources on a particular topic. It gives a summary of current educational information based on the subject. It allows the student to recognize relevant concepts, approaches, and breaches in the present research. Writing a perfect literature review includes getting applicable publications, analyzing them critically, and explaining the findings. Picking an overall thesis subject is not difficult. Deciding on realistic and precise research questions needs substantial thought and investigation. A well-written review gives the basis to well-refined research. The literature review must achieve the following goals:

Literature Review Goals

• Refine the research question
• Look for new approaches to inquiry.
• Avoid futile approaches
• Gain operational insights
• Identify recommendations for more research.
• Distinguish what requires to be a completion from what gets already done
• Identify variables that are vital and relevant.
• Gain a different perspective
• Justify the importance of the question
• Relate theories and ideas reality

Write an excellent literature review

The first step is identifying significant keywords for navigation purposes. It helps you go through literature that is already in existence. Give partiality to primary study when looking for information. Knowing which literature fits your study is difficult. The objective of a brilliant literature review includes gathering enough relevant material. Documenting the procedure used in collecting the information is crucial in helping others who come after you to find similar information. An effective literature review requires a logical and intelligent progression of thoughts. Create index cards with the title, name of the author, and the date of individual studies. The cards help you in developing reference piles that correspond to particular parts of your paper.

The next steps are as follows:

• Evaluation of data. Here, you gauge the information from an article of choice.
• Analysis of data. Here the students try to understand the data extracted from the material.
• Presentation. Here you choose what information to use.
• Developing experimental research questions and justifying them. Here, you explain why your research is useful and how it contributes positively to your study field.

Organizing your Review Properly

Three effective methods exist:

• The historical design, where the review’s structure is chronological
• The conceptual design where the review’s structure focuses on research proposals or concepts.
• The methodological design, aimed at meta-analyses

All literature reviews are either qualitative or quantitative. A qualitative review shows the significance of a research question at the start of a study. It does not predict research problems, and it compares and contrasts other studies with itself. A quantitative literature review shows the significance of a research question at the start of a study. It supports a theory used in a study, predicts the research problem, and expounds on other research findings.

Common mistakes to Avoid

Here are some common mistakes to avoid when writing a literature review regardless of the design used:

• Avoid using the perfect keywords and the most significant sources.
• Not connecting your results to those of the reviews you use
• Using secondary sources instead of primary
• Accept other people’s results blindly.

Editing your Review

The Literature review is very complicated and consumes a lot of time. When writing a thesis, it is the component that takes up most of the time in the writing process. Begin the process early to leave some ample time required for revision. Submitting a dissertation with so many grammatical and spelling errors is the worst mistake any student can make. Editing your work shows seriousness and commitment.

Conclusion

Writing a literature review requires a lot of research, which means a lot of reading. It also requires excellent organizational skills to have all the facts and information right. Having an excellent literature review guides you on how to carry out your research and avoids repetition.