PowerPoint Presentation

Reviewing The Literature

Nor Hashimah Hashim

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Review of Related Literature

Purpose and Scope

Involves systematically identifying, locating, and analyzing documents pertaining to the research topic.

The major purpose is to identify information that already exist about your topic.

Point out research strategies, procedures, and instruments that have and have not been found to be productive in investigating your topic.

A smaller, well organized review preferred.

Famous vs. Infamous Topics

Usually provide enough references directly related to a topic.

Eliminate the need for reporting less related or secondary studies.

Usually require review of any study related in some meaningful way.

Researcher need to develop a logical framework and rationale for the study.

Heavily Researched

Areas

Little Researched

Topics

Qualitative Research and the Review of Related Literature

Qualitative researchers

Construct review after starting study.

Qualitative research review

Demonstrate the underlying behind the research question,

Convince proposal reviewers that the researcher is knowledgeable.

Provide the researcher with the opportunity to identify any gaps in the body of literature and how the proposed study may contribute to the existing body of knowledge.

Help the qualitative researcher to refine research questions.

Conducting a Literature Review

Identify and make a list of keywords to guide your literature search.

Using your keywords, locate primary and secondary source that pertain to your research topic.

Evaluate your source for quality.

Abstract your sources.

Analyze and organize your sources using a literature matrix.

Write the literature review.

Identifying Keywords, Identifying, Evaluating, and Annotating Sources

Identifying Keywords

Most sources have alphabetical subject indexes to help you locate information on your topic.

A list of keywords should guide your literature search.

Identifying Your Sources

Narrow search of pertinent educational

These resources provide broad overviews of issues

Primary source

An article or report written by the person who conducted the study.

Secondary source

A brief description of a study written by someone other than the original researcher.

Primary sources are preferred in the review.

Encyclopedias, handbooks, and annual reviews found in libraries.

Various subject areas.

Searching for Book on Your Topic in the Library

Most libraries use an online catalog system as well as collective catalogs to access materials from other libraries.

Should familiarized with library website and the resources available within and beyond your library.

A keyword search uses terms or phrases pertinent to your topic to search for and identify potentially useful sources.

Keyword searches can be focused by using the Boolean operators AND, OR, and NOT.

Using AND or NOT narrows a search and reduces the number of sources identified.

Using OR broadens the search and increases the number of sources.

It is often best to start with a narrow search.

Steps for Searching Computer Databases

Identify keywords related to topic.

Select the appropriate databases

some databases using the same interface may allow you to search more than one database simultaneously.

Initiate a search using keywords selectively.

Reformulate your search using appropriate subject headings or descriptors combining terms as is appropriate.

Once you have found the relevant article:

Check the item record for links to additional subject heading or descriptors, author (s),

Cited references,

Times cited in databases,

Or other references for finding additional related items using the features within the database.

Searching the Internet and the World Wide Web

The Internet links organizations and individuals all over the world. The World Wide Web (www) is on the internet.

To access the Internet, you need a computer with a modem or Ethernet / cable line and a browser that connects to the Web.

The available resources on the www are almost limitless, so the best way to become familiar with its use is to surf in your spare time.

The Web contains a variety of sites relevant to an educational researcher. Each site is reached by using its Internet address.

Search engines have established subcategories and allow keyword searches to review large portions of the www quickly.

Becoming a Member of Professional Organizations

The websites for professional organizations maintain links to current research in a particular discipline.

Examples of popular professional organizations includes Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, National Council for the Social Studies, and the International Reading Association.

Evaluating Sources

What was the problem statement of the study?

Is the study relevant given your research interests?

Who was studied?

Where was the source published?

When was the study conducted?

How was the study conducted?

Annotating Sources

Involves creating summaries by

locating,

reviewing,

summarizing, and

classifying your references.

Annotating Sources

The main advantage of beginning with the latest references on your topic is that the most recent studies are likely to have profited from previous research.

Annotation assess

the quality,

relevance,

and accuracy of a source

Annotation articulate your response to a source,

Indicate why the source is important to your research.

Annotating Sources

For each source work, list the complete bibliographic record.

Make a copy of your references and put it in a safe place.

A helpful way to keep track of the literature is to use a matrix.

Analyzing, Organizing, and Reporting the Literature.

Reporting

Describing and reporting research call for a specialized style of writing.

Technical writing requires

Documenting facts and substantiating opinions,

Clarifying definitions and using them consistently,

Using an accepted style manual,

Starting sections with an introduction and

Ending with brief summary.

Organizing

When organizing a review

Make an outline;

Sort references by topic;

Analyze the similarities and differences between references in a given subheading;

Give a meaningful overview in which you discuss references least related to the problem first;

And conclude with a brief summary of the literature and its implications.

Meta-Analysis

Meta-Analysis

Statistical approach to summarizing the results of many quantitative studies addressing the same topic.

It provides a numerical way of expressing the composite result of the studies.

A central characteristic of meta-analysis is that it is as inclusive as possible.

An effect size is a numerical way of expressing the strength or magnitude of a reported relation.

In meta-analysis, an effect size is computed for each study, and then the individual effect sizes are averaged.

More Information in This Video.

References

Gay, L. R., Mills, G.E., & Airasian, P. (2011). Educational Research: Competencies for Analysis and Applications, Tenth Edition. Pearson Education International.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jiQJJXTD0VI

The EndThank You