... without knowing that I was about to write a lit review, as a (foreign) grad student in musicology (Univ of Illinois) in the 70s, I tried to answer in writing: WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT a given (xyz) TOPIC? It was overwhelming! So, the first thing you want to focus on is the WHAT part, as well as how much, who are the readers/learners, and why you are doing this. Then comes the craft that we learn (typically in lib schools--should be extended across all colleges and professional schools) about the ways we construct lit reviews (AKA meta analysis of results in a given discipline, on a subtopic, etc.). Katherine's matrix is an excellent way to conceptualize that HOW part of constructing and writing LR.
Also looking at ARIST chapters might help :-)
Zorana Ercegovac
On Sat, Jan 21, 2012 at 5:09 PM, Katherine McCain
<[log in to unmask]> wrote:
Sheri and Charles,
In one sense, there is a “best way” but it won’t be the kind of step-by-step approach that seems to be desired.
- Consider a set of documents that discuss one or more themes on the subject of the review
- You can model the documents as a matrix — each row is a document, each column is a topic potentially discussed by that document (this is not unlike a document/term matrix).
- An annotated bibliography would “write across the rows” -- dealing with each document in turn. This is a way to write a very bad lit review
- A better lit review would be to “write down the columns” -- taking up each theme in turn and discussing it with reference to the documents.
Kate McCainSheri,
There is no single "best" way of doing a literature review. Much depends on the aim, scope and length of the research study being reported. Also, different literature reviews have different purposes. If you want a recipe, I suggest you consult a cookbook. Then, again, there is no single best recipe for any dish or food offering, except, of course, my wife's. You write, "I wanted one that’s been tested among our group." I wonder, just who are the members of your group?
Charles R. Hildreth, Ph.D.
146 Marks Avenue
Lancaster, Ohio 43130
From: Sheri A. Massey <[log in to unmask]" target="_blank">[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]" target="_blank">[log in to unmask]
Sent: Friday, January 20, 2012 2:59 PM
Subject: Literature Review Text
Hello All,
I am looking for a book or manual that walks a person through the steps of doing a literature review— very detailed, replicable steps. There are many lit review books available, but I wanted one that’s been tested among our group. Also, I am not looking for a complete guide to research, just something on literature reviews.
Thanks in advance for your help!
-SM
______________________
Sheri Anita Massey, Ph.D.
Lecturer
College of Information Studies
4117L Hornbake Library, South Wing
University of Maryland
O: (301) 405-4580
F: (301) 314-9145
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