Purpose
A literature review compares and contrasts this. What is THIS?
Existing research/previous studies/perspectives
In a standard research paper, the literature review usually comes immediately after this section.
Introduction
A neutral synonym for "states" or "says."
"Notes," "observes," "mentions," or "writes"
This word means "combining different parts to make a whole."
Synthesis
Wikipedia and Google Scholar, this is the better place to find sources.
Google Scholar
A literature review saves time for the reader because it provides this: a collection of all the important info in one place.
Overview/background
A literature review should end with a sentence that predicts or leads into this next section of inquiry 3.
Argument(s)
A strong verb to use when an author is disagreeing with another author.
"Refutes," "counters," "rejects," or "argues against"
“Author A says x. Author B says y. Author C says z.” This structure is an example of this (bad) habit.
Summarizing without synthesis
This "Gold Standard" process means other experts checked the article before it was published.
Peer review
One main goal of the lit review is to establish this quality for the writer, showing they have done their homework.
Credibility/authority
This organizational style groups sources by date of publication.
Chronological
A verb to use when an author is giving a tentative idea or a theory, not a hard fact.
"Suggests," "implies," or "proposes"
“Unlike Smith, Jones argues that…” The word "Unlike" is an example of this type of word.
Transition word/contrast word
For a paper on AI or social media, a source from 1995 lacks this quality.
Currency
Instead of just summarizing, a good lit review does this (meaning it evaluates and connects sources).
Synthesize/analyze
The first sentence of a paragraph shouldn't just be a summary of a book; it should announce the main theme of that paragraph. This is called the...
Topic sentence
In the sentence: "Dr. Smith argues that coffee is healthy," the words "Dr. Smith argues" are known as this.
Signal phrase
“Both Smith and Jones agree that…” This sentence shows this relationship between sources.
Agreement/consensus
When checking a source, you look at the date to make sure the information isn't...
Outdated
A lit review is not just a list of summaries; it identifies patterns, themes, and these (places where information is missing).
Research gaps
A bad literature review organizes paragraphs by "Author." A good literature review organizes paragraphs by "Topic" or...
Theme/chronologically
Using signal phrases prevents "dropped quotes" and helps the writer distinguish their voice from this.
The source's voice
Think of the shape of the paper. The Literature Review starts broad/general, and eventually gets...
Specific/narrow
If you find a study titled "Why Sugar is Healthy," but you notice it was paid for by Coca-Cola, the source has a problem with this.
Bias/conflict of interest