MPU32143

WRITING RESEARCH
PAPER
LECTURE FOUR
 Chapter Two:
Literature Review
PARAPHRASING,
SUMMARISING AND
SYNTHESIZING FOR
LITERATURE REVIEW
 Literature Review
 A discussion of ideas, arguments, findings and theories about a topic

 Using evidence and ideas from past research that argues for and against the idea.

 This leads to a balanced discussion that explores different views, findings and
perspectives about a certain idea

 Point out the trends and themes in past research

 The gaps that past research fails to cover and that your study will fill in this gap
 Why do we need literature
review?
● Information that you find from past research helps you understand your topic better

● Findings and evidences from past research

● Helps you understand the other disciplines that your topic is linked to

● Provide you with information that helps you design your questionnaire
 Funnel Approach
Your literature review should be constructed in the shape of a funnel:

 Starting broadly by introducing your research topic

 Moving into the focus of the research
 Continually narrowing the focus to a few selected variables (those that
you will include in your study)
 Provide a specific context for your study (Refer to RO/RQ)
 Where to search for
literature?
● Library (Journals, magazines, books, conference abstracts & full text,
newspaper clippings, multimedia resources)
● Online search –encyclopedia, dictionaries, e-books, e-journals
● Search using search engines like Google

○ Use only credible websites-(Google Scholar, MyCite,Myto)

○ Avoid Wikipedia

○ Type ‘pdf’ at the end of your key words to search for journal
articles
 Concentration
Self-worth
Facebook messenger Communication
‘Close friend’ list skill, etc.
Video call
Photo-sharing, etc.

Problems
Features
Educational Facebook Page
Professional Facebook Group

Topic:
Facebook Knowledge

Functions Media

Keep in touch with your Online news

loved ones Videos
Release your stress Pictures
Read news, etc. Websites
Use Sub-headings

 Organize your literature review and present the findings in

a systematic way

 Make your report easier to read

Topic Sentences
● The first line of each paragraph in your literature review
should be a clear, concise topic sentence that introduces
the reader to the topic of the paragraph and what is to
follow in that paragraph.

● The controlling idea/theme

In-text Citation

● Original text: Surfing Facebook reduces stress.

● Reference: Williams, R. T. 2003. Healthy living. Kuala
Lumpur: Pelanduk.

● Paraphrase 1: Surfing Facebook can help one lessen the

level of stress (Williams, 2003).

● Paraphrase 2: According to Williams (2003), surfing

Facebook is one way to lessen stress.
 Chapter 2: Literature Review
(from: https://www.rlf.org.uk/resources/the-structure-of-a-literature-review/ )

Introduction
The introduction should:
• define your topic and provide an appropriate context for reviewing the
literature;
• establish your reasons – i.e. point of view – for
• reviewing the literature;
• explain the organisation – i.e. sequence – of the review;
• state the scope of the review – i.e. what is included and what isn’t included.

For example, if you were reviewing the literature on obesity in children you
might say something like:
There are a large number of studies of obesity trends in the general population.
However, since the focus of this research is on obesity in children, these will
Main body
The middle or main body should:
• organise the literature according to common themes;
• provide insight into the relation between your chosen topic and the wider
subject area e.g. between obesity in children and obesity in general;
• move from a general, wider view of the literature being reviewed to the
specific focus of your research.

Conclusion
The conclusion should:
• summarise the important aspects of the existing body of literature;
• evaluate the current state of the literature reviewed;
• identify significant flaws or gaps in existing knowledge;
• outline areas for future study;
• link your research to existing knowledge.
 MPU32143
SUMMARISING,
PARAPHRASING & SYNTHESING

LECTURE 4
 LEARNING OUTCOMES

⚫How to avoid plagiarizing other’s work.

⚫How to put a passage in your own words without changing the meaning.
⚫The definition of paraphrasing.
⚫How to find main ideas in the text and paraphrase them.
⚫How to summarize a passage.
 Avoiding Plagiarism
• Plagiarism is when you copy directly from someone else's work
without acknowledging (citing) the original author.

• In other words, it appears as if the work is all your own. This looks
as if you are taking credit for someone else's work.

• In academic writing, there can be severe penalties for plagiarism.

 How to avoid plagiarism?

1. Paraphrasing
2. Summarizing
 What is Paraphrasing?

• It involves re-writing the author’s idea in your own words without

changing the original/ intended meaning.
• In other words, paraphrasing is a condensed version of another
author's work, or putting the author's words into your own words.
• A paraphrased example must be cited. You must provide a
reference.
• It is not just merely substituting words or phrases.
 Paraphrasing Techniques
1) Use Synonyms

The U.S. government declared that the AIDS crisis poses a national security threat.

The government of the United States announced that AIDS could harm the nation's
security.

● Be aware that not all synonyms have the same meaning or are
used the same way.

● Avoid selecting words that you’re not familiar with.

● Avoid using synonyms for specialist terms or proper nouns.

2) Use different word forms/ parts of speech

●Parts of speech = nouns, adjectives, verbs

Example 1:
There is an expectation that accountants are knowledgeable about
taxation laws.

Accountants are expected to know taxation laws.

Example 2:
John is an accurate typist.

John types accurately.

3) Change the sentence structure

● Sentences can be changed by altering any of the following:

a) word order

b) the number of clauses in the sentence (break up a long

sentence into 2 shorter ones or combine two sentences to form
a longer one)

c) linking words
Example 1:The government raised the excise on tobacco to deter the people from
smoking.

Ans: To discourage smoking, the excise on tobacco was increased by the

government.

Example 2:The number of starving population has grown in the last decade.

Ans: There has been a growing number of starving population in the last
decade.
 Checklist for Paraphrasing

✔The meaning is the same.

✔Most of the words have been changed.
✔The sentences have been significantly restructured.
✔It is about the same length as the original writing.
✔The information is correctly referenced.
1) Highlight the main ideas

“Marriage was a greater influence on the course of many of the women’s

lives than choice of job or career, or even family background. Yet few
women talked about choosing to get married (although choice may be a
misnomer) in the same way they talked about career choices.
Relationships are generally believed to belong to the realm of emotion,
and ‘we fell in love’ or ‘then I got married’ suffices. The decision to
marry is not usually something to be analysed or explained, nor is the
choice of a particular man. Indeed, both getting married and marrying a
particular man often appeared to be inevitabilities rather than choices”
(Park, 1991, p. 113).
1) Highlight the main ideas

“Marriage was a greater influence on the course of many of the women’s

lives than choice of job or career, or even family background. Yet few
women talked about choosing to get married (although choice may be a
misnomer) in the same way they talked about career choices.
Relationships are generally believed to belong to the realm of emotion,
and ‘we fell in love’ or ‘then I got married’ suffices. The decision to
marry is not usually something to be analysed or explained, nor is the
choice of a particular man. Indeed, both getting married and marrying a
particular man often appeared to be inevitabilities rather than choices”
(Park, 1991, p. 113).
2) List some key ideas/ concepts/ phrases from the passage and
rephrase them

●marriage, getting married

●marriage was a great influence
●decision to marry
●not usually something to be analysed or explained

●selecting a life partner

●significant impact, influential factor
●choice, marriage options, choice of partner
●typically not talked about, not a topic of discussion
3) Rewrite using the alternative words and phrases.

Park's (1991) interviews with women showed that although marriage

impacted women's lives significantly, it was not typically a decision that
was analysed. Few women discussed the topic of marriage, including
choice of partner. Rather, marriage was seen as more of a matter of course
than an individual choice.

⚫NOTE: Never use one single strategy when paraphrasing. You are
advised to combine strategies to paraphrase materials properly.
4) Check that you have included the main points and important
information in the paraphrased text.

5) Review the paraphrased text to check whether it accurately reflects

the original text but in your own words and style.

6) Remember to include a reference.

What are the differences between summarizing
and paraphrasing?

Summarizing
●Presents a broad overview of the passage, the length is
usually much shorter than the original text

Paraphrasing
●Changes the word or phrasing of a passage, but retains its
original meaning
 Synthesising
⚫ an important and complex skill required in academic writing
⚫ involves combining ideas from a range of sources in order to
group and present common ideas or arguments
⚫ combines ideas from more than one text or source

Why Synthesising?
Synthesizing allows you to:

• combine information and ideas from multiple sources to develop and

strengthen your argument(s).
• demonstrate that you have read extensively on the topic.
• use and cite multiple sources.
 How to Synthesise?

1. Read relevant material. Read with a purpose and study the different
sources carefully.
2. Identify the details from the sources.
3. Make brief notes using key points / keywords. This makes it easier
to compare and contrast relevant information.
4. Organise your notes.
5. Look at your notes and identify similar and contradictory
arguments.
6. Group these together to develop / support your arguments.
7. Cite (reference) all the authors you have used.
Example:
THE END