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Writing a literature review - quick guide

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Liz Garrity
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What is a literature review?

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“A literature review is an analysis and synthesis of work that has been undertaken in a particular area”.    [Aveyard, 2016, page 1]

 Critical discussion is a crucial component of writing a good review.
What is a narrative review? A narrative review is one type of literature review.  If you are writing for an academic assignment you probably intend to write a narrative review.  The focus of the question in a narrative review may be broader than in, for example, a systematic review, but you should still use a systematic approach to carrying out the review.

Where do I start?

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Be clear about the purpose of the review.

You may not have decided on your question at this stage but choosing a topic that interests you will make the process much easier!

Literature searching

Keep a record of your searching as you go along.  Collect information about your topic using a combination of primary sources, such as journal articles or reports, and secondary sources, such as article reviews or textbooks. 

You should search journals by hand as well as electronically; no electronic source can find everything.  You should include unpublished as well as published sources.

Your local NHS GGC library can help you conduct a comprehensive literature search (see Reference section for link to Library Training page).

Reading     Searching.png

Searching and reading the literature is a continuous process in the early stages. 

Performing a comprehensive search is essential to finding the necessary information on a topic.  It will also help to avoid plagiarism and bias.

Focusing your question  focus.gif

Once you have gathered your background information, you can frame your research question.  The question should be focused, clear and precise.

Tip: Have a look at Glasgow Caledonian University’s, ‘Defining a practice-based question: Focusing your question’ (3).

Writing your review

The structure you choose (eg thematic, chronological) should allow the review to flow from one section to the next.

You may wish to start writing a draft of your review whilst you continue to read and search for evidence.

Synthesis and analysis

 

There are many methods available to analyse your data. The method you choose will depend on whether your data is qualitative or quantitative. 

Thematic synthesis is one approach that is used with qualitative data.  Quantitative data can be combined in a meta-analysis or description of statistical data. 

Organising and synthesising the information makes it easier to analyse the data and make comparisons across studies.
Critical appraisal tools There are various instruments available that will help you evaluate (critique) the studies in your review to identify their strengths and weaknesses. 

Have a look at the checklists produced by the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (4).
Presentation Follow your institution’s guidelines regarding presentation of the review.

One example is to use the IMRaD format – Introduction, Method, Results, and Discussion (5).

The use of subheadings will make the review easier to read and will help the reader to understand the points you are making.

Introduction

This section defines the scope and purpose of the review.
Methodology Use the Methods section to explain exactly what you did.  Explain the rationale for conducting the study as well as your approach to the analysis and synthesis of information.  Document your searching rationale and process.

Results

This section is not just a summary of the results.  You should explain your analysis of the findings.

Discussion and conclusions

 

Use this section to reflect on your results.  What do the results mean?  How might they affect future practice?  There are different frameworks available for structuring this section. 

See, ‘Hess, D.R.; How to Write an Effective Discussion’ (6).

How can the library help?

The GGC Library Network stocks a range of books on this topic.  Log on to the NHS Scotland library catalogue to see what is available and contact one of our friendly librarians for advice, training and on-going support.  (See References section for a link to the library catalogue).

If you think of one piece of literature as one part of a jigsaw .....

   

 

..... then you can see how a review of the literature is like the whole completed jigsaw.”

 [Aveyard, 2014, page 2]

References

 
  1. Helen Aveyard, Click link: Doing a literature review in health and social care: a practical guide, 3rd edition, Open University Press, 2014.
  2. Click link: NHS GGC Library Network Training Page
  3. Glasgow Caledonian University. Click link: Defining a practice-based question: Focusing your question
  4. Click link: CASP: The Critical Appraisal Skills Programme
  5. Click link: The IMRaD format, Search & Write (Sok & Skriv) 2017
  6. Click link: How to Write an Effective Discussion, Dean R Hess, Respiratory Care 2004;49(10):1238-1241
  7. Click link: NHS Scotland Library Catalogue
  8. Michael Coughlan, Click link: Doing a literature review in nursing, health and social care, Sage Publications Ltd, 2013
  9. Andrew Booth, Click link: Systematic approaches to a successful literature review, 2nd edition, Sage, 2016
  10. Indiana University Bloomington, Click link: Narrowing a Topic and Developing a Research Question
  11. Glasgow Caledonian University Library, Click link: Writing a literature review
  12. Click link: How to do (or not to do) a critical literature review. Jill Jesson, Pharmacy Education 2006;6(2):139-148
  13. Click link: Writing Narrative Style Literature Reviews, Rossella Ferrari, Medical Writing 2015;24 no. 4
  14. Helen Aveyard, Click link: A Post-graduate’s guide to doing a literature review in health and social care, Open University Press, 2016.
  15. Click link: NHS GGC Library Network Contact Us Page

 

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