In this resource we will guide you through, what a literature review is and its components. We will
also look at how to start planning and preparing for your literature review
- Writing your literature review will be a constantly developing process. You cannot do all your reading
- and research before writing as it is often not until you start explaining a point in writing that you find
- where your argument is weak, and you need to collect more evidence.
- It is worth beginning to write your review once you are part of the way through your reading,
- reviewing and rewriting it as you go.
- Reading anything on your research area is a good start. As you continue you can make decisions
- about where to focus your reading.
FAQs
How long will it take to write a literature review?
This depends on the topic but a good literature review needs adequate time to carry out a thorough
literature search and to read and evaluate the material. You may also need to obtain material that is
not available in the Library and this can take a while.
Where can I go for more help?
Your course leader/ supervisor/ tutor should be the first person you ask for help if you are unclear
about your dissertation/ thesis.
If you need help in terms of identifying relevant sources of information, searching for literature,
managing your search results or you would like to develop your academic writing skills you can
contact our team of professionals.
How can I link emerging arguments in literature review?
When writing your literature review remember not to just describe what one writer says, and then go
on to give a general overview of another writer, and then another, and so on.
