CHAPTER TWO

REVIEW OF LITERATURE
 2.1. Concepts of Literature Review
 What is a literature review?
• A literature review is a search and evaluation of the available
literature in your given subject or chosen topic area.
• A review is a critical evaluation of scholarly articles, books, text,
events, object, or phenomenon and other sources relevant to a
particular area of research.
• It is an overview of published and unpublished materials which
help answer two fundamental questions:
1.What are the current theoretical or policy issues and debates
related to your topic?
2.What is the current state of art/knowledge about these issues and
problems?
 Strategies for Developing the Theoretical Framework

• Examine your thesis title and research problem.

• Brainstorm on what you consider to be the key variables in

your research.

• List and construct variables that might be relevant to your

study.

• Review critically literature to find answers to your research

question.
 Theoretical and Conceptual Framework

• The theoretical framework provides a general representation

of relationships between things in a given phenomenon.

• The conceptual framework, on the other hand, embodies the

specific direction by which the research will have to be
undertaken.

• It is also called the research paradigm.

 Types of Literature

 In general, the literature can be divided into four main

categories.
1.Topical literature: relevant to the subject matter of the research.
2.Theoretical literature: relevant to concepts and theoretical
frameworks. Example, lower interest rates will boost the
housing market.

3. Methodological literature: relevant to methods utilized by the

researcher and strategies of data collection and analysis.

4. Policy literature: relevant to the implementation and

effectiveness of interventions. Example, policy or program
evaluation.
 2.2. The Importance of Literature Review
• In any research project it is essential to understand what has
already been done (if anything) in the specific topic you have
chosen.
• Reviewing literature can be time-consuming, daunting and
frustrating, but it is also rewarding.
Basic functions of literature:
 As a way to frame, bring clarity and focus to your research
problem.
 Improve your methodology.
 Broaden your knowledge.
 Contextualize your findings.
 Provide a source for making comparisons.
 Is a way to justify a research project to stakeholders-show the
gap.
 The Importance of Literature Review…
 In addition to the above points,:
• Has the work already been done?
• Who are the experts in the field?
• What are the main theoretical perspectives/paradigms?
Example: theories of Microfinance.

• What are the common research methods in the topic?

• What are the main problems in researching the topic?

• Are there any major controversies in this topic area?

• Is the topic open to hypothesis testing?

 2.3. Purpose of a Literature Review
 Apart from providing the answers to the earlier questions, the
review should also achieve the following:
• It enables you to sharpen and focus your initial research
questions or even suggest new research questions.
• It provides you with a wide and deep knowledge of the
theoretical, empirical and methodological issues within your
chosen research topic.
• It provides a ‘bridge‘ between your research
questions/objective and your research findings.
• It should enable you to compare your research methods,
theoretical framework and findings with work already done.
• It enables you to set the scope and range of your research topic.
 2.4. Types of Literature Review
• There are different types of literature review that can be
undertaken, depending on the purpose of the research.
• The main types of literature review are:
 An evaluative review
 An exploratory review
 An instrumental review
• Note that we need to flow deductive approach in review with
the purpose of testing hypothesis. Theory-Hypothesis –
collect data- analyze- test hypothesis/reject or accept.
• These are not mutually exclusive and often be mixed
together.
• However, in the case of academic research, it is the second
type of literature review which is the most common.
 Evaluative Review
• This type of literature review focuses on providing a discussion of the literature in terms
of its coverage and contribution to knowledge in a particular area. Helps to provide up
to dated knowledge.
• An apt example of this type of review is meta-analysis which provides a comprehensive
commentary on a very large number of research projects focused on a specific topic.
• Meta-analysis is a statistical technique for amalgamating, summarizing and reviewing
previous quantitative research.

• It is often used to directly compare research findings from these projects- for example,
in measuring reliability coefficients, regression coefficients (Cronbach's alpha), and also
artificial constructs defined in the same way but applied in different projects.

• The field of econometrics is often typified by literature reviews of this type.

• In this case, multiple scientific studies addressing the same question, with each
individual study reporting measurements that are expected to have some degree of error.
 Exploratory Review
• This is a literature review which is seeking to find out what
actually exists in the academic literature in terms of theory,
empirical evidence and research methods as they pertain to a
specific research topic and its related wider subject area.

• It is also used to sharpen, focus and identify research questions

that remain unanswered in the specific topic.

• The key to conducting a review of this type is to remain focused

on the field of study and not allow yourself to be taken into other
directions just because they may be interesting.

• Note that when a researcher has a limited amount of experience

with or knowledge about a research issue, exploratory research is
useful.
 Instrumental Review
• This is where the literature is used exclusively as a source of
information on how to conduct some research on a highly
specific research problem.

• It is not designed to identify the state of current knowledge in

an area but to identify the best way to carry out a research
project without reinventing the wheel and without incurring
unnecessary and avoidable costs.
 Some General Points In Literature Reviewing

• Reviewing academic literature is not the same as just reading it!

• You need to think about the ideas, the research methods, how
the data was collected, and how the findings have been
interpreted.

• This is what we mean by Critical Reading!!

• Focus on
• Strengths and weaknesses, controversies, inconsistencies, with
respect to theories, hypotheses, research methods,
findings/results or conclusions.
 Some General Points In Literature…
• Here are some questions which you should keep in mind
when studying (not just reading) academic literature. For any
given piece of work:
• Is there a theoretical framework? If so, what is it and how
does it fit into this topic?
• Does the work provide links to other work in the topic?
• Is there an empirical aspect to the work? If so, what is its
basis?
• Does the work relate to a specific social group?
• Does it relate to a particular place?
• How old is the work? Is it still valid?
 Some General Points In Literature…

• In addition to asking these questions, you also need to

summarize the literature review.

a) What does the previous research tell us about this topic?

b) What does it not tell us? and

c) What are the key weaknesses in terms of theory, methods

and data?
 Sources of Literature
• There are many sources of literature including journals, books,
reports, abstracts, and electronic websites, among others.

• Searching for the appropriate literature can be very time

consuming, and you need to be very specific when using library
search engines, internet search engines and other databases.

• Google Search Engine is the best search engine in the world

• Library databases search for published and academic resources,

including articles in journals, newspapers, and magazines.

• Once an appropriate article is obtained, there are various ways of

reading it for research purposes.
 Sources of Literature…
• In doing the review, one must consider the credibility of the article.
• in referred journals
• Articles published peer-reviewed (refereed or scholarly) journals
tend to be the most reliable.
• Because they are written by experts and are reviewed by several
other experts in the field before the article is published.
• Articles obtained from the World Wide Web (www) have to be
treated with a great deal of caution, although there is good material
on the Web.
• If you plan to use the internet as a major source of research
material, the most reliable sites are those of academic departments
in universities.
• Other sources of reliable material include government departments
(Like, PMBOK, AfDB, IMF, WB, WHO, FAO, IOM, UN,
Transparency International etc).
 How to Write Review of Literature

• Step 1: Decide on a topic

• Step 2: Identify the literature that you will review.

• Step 3: Analyze the literature- means closely studying a text,

interpreting its meanings, and exploring why the author made
certain choices.
• Step 4: Summarize the literature in table or concept map format.

• Step 5: Synthesize the literature prior to writing your review.

• Step 6: Writing the review using appropriate citation (Example,

Ostrom, 2006: 81-90)
 Basic Complements of Literature Review
• Background Information: Initially introduce the topic, key
concepts, and terms relevant to your study.
• Describe the scope and organization of the literature review.
Revise the past and present studies and clarify the purpose of
the study.
• Theory: Look at pertinent theories that guide your study.

• Review of Literature on Instrument: Measurements, reliability

and validity estimates.
• Summary: Clear and concise account of the current state of
knowledge on your topic and the topics of your study.
In summarizing others work key points to be included
• Participants information and criteria for their
inclusion
• Sample size
• Location of the study
• Type of the study: Experiment, interview or survey
• The nature of the task: what was done and the
details of tests used.
• Findings: Numerical or descriptive
• How the research question is related to the findings.
 Synthesizing the Existing Literature
• To synthesize is to combine two or more elements to
form a new whole.
• Not just the list of other’s work
But
• Identify the issues highlight in the research.

• Highlight differences and similarities.

• Identify the areas of consensus among the research.

• It is imperative that your voice guides the discussion.

In synthesizing information from different sources
the following guidelines must be used:
• Comparing and contrasting different authors

• Group authors who have similar conclusion

• Criticize the aspects methodologies

• Group areas of disagreement

• Highlight exemplary studies

• Highlight the gaps

• Conclude/summarize what the literature says.

 Some Tips
• Browse discipline-specific or area-specific reviews- PMBOK or
American Society for Public Administration (ASPA) such African
Economic Association.
• Avoid the extraneous details of the literature; do a brief review of
the information, not a comprehensive report.
• Emphasis on the important results and conclusions of other studies,
the relevant data and trends from previous research, and particular
methods or designs that could be duplicated or should be avoided.
• Show the weaknesses and faults in the design, discussing how you
would avoid similar problems.
• Always refer to the original source to avoid any errors of
interpretation or transcription.
• Close the literature review section by summarizing the important
aspects of the literature and interpreting them in terms of your
problem.
 Some Tips…
• Cited works or literature should be acknowledged using
authors last names with year of publications throughout the
literature review section.
• Citations within the past five years are ideal and generally
considered current.
• Citations ten years and older should be used cautiously and
only when necessary.
• Unpublished documents and lay sources like encyclopedias
are discouraged.
• Serious care must be given to avoid any possible consideration
of plagiarism.
• Plagiarism is presenting someone else's work or ideas as your
own without full acknowledgement.
 Some Tips…
Ways to Avoid Plagiarism
• Paraphrase - You have to read and put it into your own
words. Make sure that you do not copy more than two
words in a row from the text you have found.
• Cite- Citing is one of the effective ways to avoid
plagiarism. Follow the document formatting guidelines (i.e.
APA-American Psychological Association referencing
(follow the author-date method of in-text citation at the
end, example (Jones, 1998); (Desta, 2016).
• Harvard referencing style, in-text citations contain the
author surname, year of publication and page number(s).,
Chicago manual, etc.).
• According to Jones (1998) students often had difficulty
using American Psychological Association (APA) style
when it was their first time.
 Ways to Avoid Plagiarism…

• Not citing properly can constitute plagiarism.

• Quoting - When quoting a source, use the quote exactly

the way it appears. No one wants to be misquoted

• Referencing - One of the most important ways to avoid

plagiarism is including a reference page or page of works
cited at the end of your research paper.

• Joseph Eugene Stieglitz (2013) defined that progressive

capitalism is defined as…..
 Some Tips…
• Be sure to edit your research paper carefully and check for
plagiarism before submitting.

• Use plagiarism checker. Most educators and educational

institutions are using some kind of plagiarism checker
software to check students’ papers.

• Do not take the chance of not checking your research paper.

• Plagiarism could mean the loss of your academic degree or

career.
 Reference Styles- Example

• Collective action is defined as voluntary action taken by a

group to achieve common interests (Marshall).

• Bromley (1991) and Ostrom and Schlager (2006), “bundles of

rights” approach was adopted in this study to analyze the
distribution of rights …..

• Jane Anne et la (2014) conducted empirical research in Kenya

on Challenges Facing Micro And Small Enterprises…..