Learning from others and reviewing the literature

Lesson 1: Selecting Relevant Literature

 Review of Related Literature

 One major activity in research that makes you examine or study concepts or ideas
related to your research that people manage to publish in books, journals, or other
reading materials in the past (Baraceros, 2016)
 Literature Review – a compilation, classification, and evaluation of what other
researchers have written on a particular topic (Serrano, 2016). It is a systematic,
explicit, and reproducible method for identifying, evaluating, and synthesizing the
existing body of completed and recorded work produced by researchers, scholars,
and practitioners (Fink, 2005).

 Purpose of Literature Review

 To provide an overview of what is known about the topic and to assess the
strength of the evidence on that topic.
 Baraceros
1. To find out the connection of your research to the current conditions or
situation of the world;
2. To know more about theories or concepts underlying your research and to
learn from them with respect to your own research study;
3. To discover the relation of your research with previous research studies;

4. To obtain information on the accuracy or relevance of your research

questions; and
5. To familiarize yourself with technical terms related to your research

 Steps in Conducting a Systematic Review (Baraceros, 2016)

1. Clarify the research questions
 2. Plan the research based on your understanding of the research questions
3. Search the literature
4. List criteria for considering the values of written works
5. Evaluate the quality of previous research studies
6. Summarize the various forms of knowledge collected

1. Choose the topic - As a researcher, you must be able to identify your research question or
research topic that your literature aims to address.
2. Identify the databases and resources - here is a vast array of resources available online
and printed materials that you can choose from
3. Search and refine - You must be able to select which materials are relevant to your
research topic/question. Narrow down and focus on the materials that are related to your
topic.
4. Read and analyse - You will have to ask yourself if you have critically analyzed the
literature you have gathered. You will then have to analyze the strengths and weaknesses
of the items that are indicated as you relate them to your research topic.
5. Write the review - Organize the literature review according to themes, trends, and
important concepts. It is not just merely listing down all the literature that you have
gathered. This is the stage where you synthesize and evaluate them according to the
direction of your research topic.
 Two types of reviewing literature
1. Traditional – usually used in qualitative research
2. Systematic – quantitative research
Lesson 2: Citing Related Literature

 Citing Related Literature

 In RRL, you cannot avoid borrowing information, ideas, concepts, and details
from other resources that are originally created by other people. As part of
research ethics, it is a sign of courtesy and integrity to cite the original source of
whatever idea or concept that you wish to include in your research. It is a way of
acknowledging the contributor of an important part of your research

 In-Text Citation and Referencing Styles

 Other people’s ideas/concepts that you include in the main body of your research
should be cited. This citation is what you call as In-Text Citation.
 Ex: Baraceros (2016) stated that as a sign of respect to the owners of these
various knowledge, and as being grateful for their contribution, it is but right to
cite them in the main body of your research.
 Bibliography or References – where you indicate the sources of the
ideas/concepts that you borrowed, usually located at the end of your research
paper
 Ex APA - Baraceros, E. L. (2016). Learning from Others and Reviewing the
Literature Practical Research 2. Manila: Rex Book Store Inc.

 Take note that the in-text citation is necessary under the ff condition:
 When the researcher
1. Paraphrases statements of another source
2. Summarizes the ideas of another source
3. Quotes the exact statements of another source
4. Makes reference to ideas of another source

 Most commonly used referencing styles:

1. American Psychological Association (APA) – over time, they have developed a
generally accepted style of writing papers and citing sources used throughout the
scientific and social scientific worlds. This is usually used in the social sciences,
especially in sociology, psychology, anthropology, education, business, and other
similar fields
2. Modern Language Association (MLA) – is used in most academic settings, usually
in the humanities, particularly in literature, liberal arts, and language
Lesson 3: Synthesizing Related Literature

 Synthesize
 Definition – to combine two or more elements to form a new whole. In the
literature review, the “elements” are the findings of the literature you gather and
read; the new “new whole” is the conclusion you draw from those findings
 Purpose - to draw conclusions about the findings in the literature so that you can
identify how the literature addresses your research question.
 Process
1. Gather literature that addresses your research question
2. Review literature and take notes: describe, summarize, analyse, and identify
key concepts
3. Synthesize literature: compare & contrast, critically evaluate, interpret so that
you can draw a conclusion
 The literature review is an iterative process!
Lesson 4: Making a Coherent Review of Literature

 It is important that your literature review has a logical and coherent structure. So
the following structural approaches (Serrano, 2016) are important to consider in
organizing your review of the available literature:
1. Chronological Organization – the discussion of the researches can be
organized orderly according to historical or developmental context.
2. The “Classic” studies organization – a discussion or outline of the major
writings regarded as significant in your area of study. Remember that in
nearly all research there are “benchmark” studies or articles that should be
acknowledged.
3. Topical or Thematic Organization - - the discussion can be organized in
categories or conceptual subjects for your topics.
4. Inverted Pyramid Organization – the literature review may begin with
discussion of more specific localized studies that focus increasingly on the
specific questions at hand.
 Conjunctions are used to organize discourse with the logical relations.
Conjunctions can help fragment the texts, give logical connection, and coherence.