What is a literature review in a dissertation? How can you write a literature review dissertation? These questions must be bothering you if you are a student, especially if you are based in the UK and assigned a research project. So, guys, a dissertation literature review provides a critical analysis of the existing analysis on your chosen topic. It helps you identify gaps in the literature that your study can fill.
Imagine! Writing a literature review without proper knowledge and support. As a result, you might fail or score less in your research paper. This can be quite traumatising for you. Even though it is an essential part of the research process, it can make your and other students’ lives hell. You must be wondering how that is even possible. Well, you will know after reading this blog.
Most importantly, your dissertation literature review is the foundation for your entire project, as it demonstrates your deep understanding of the field. It positions your research within existing knowledge and identifies a gap you aim to fill. You can even get help from professionals dissertation writing services.
Are you exhausted from hearing the term literature review frequently at your university and not knowing what it means? Many undergraduates or Masters students struggle with the daunting and challenging concept of a literature review. Well, no need to worry, as we’ll guide you through each step of writing a literature review. From choosing your research sources to synthesise your findings, we’ve got you covered. Here you will find every crucial piece of data in this guide.
What is a literature review?
Are you a student? If so, then you need to know that the dissertation literature review is a crucial roadmap at the beginning of your academic journey. So, LR summarises existing research in your field, positioning your dissertation within this larger landscape.
While an exhaustive read-through of everything isn’t feasible, you aim to demonstrate a broad understanding. Do you know a literature review isn’t a mere list of authors and opinions? It paints a picture of the current state of your field. It highlights different schools of thought, presents diverse perspectives on key issues, and identifies shifts in prevailing viewpoints.
A literature review for a dissertation evaluates your source and then summarises it accordingly. However, selecting credible, academic sources authored by experts is crucial for writing a good review.
Purpose and Scope of the Literature Review
How to write a good literature review? Knowing the answer is one of the biggest achievements for any student when it comes to a thesis. A literature-based dissertation is a summary of your writing. However, if you are working on any research paper, then it is your key responsibility to aim for wide reading.
Purpose of the Literature Review
Did you know literature reviews play a significant role? Well, it serves as a thorough assessment of all the relevant scholarly research related to your chosen topic. You know what, guys? LR’s goal is to provide a complete overview of the latest data on your research topic. So, if you want to identify the gaps in the available literature, then your topic needs to fill the basic requirements.
- You can now establish your familiarity with the selected research topic because of its scholarly research context.
- You can even create a theoretical methodology and framework for your research paper.
- It shows how your research contributes to a debate and addresses a gap.
- You can also evaluate the state of your research and exhibit your ideas. Your knowledge of the scholarly debates around your research paper topic will surely help you a lot.
Scope of the Literature Review
Do you want to comprehend the scope of an LR? If so, then we would suggest you thoroughly check your paper’s specific problem. From the problem statement to the purpose of the research questions, everything needs to be checked thoroughly. The RQs come from the literature, which means you can easily indicate what has been studied.
In the research field, the scope of the LR thesis relates to the breadth of your review. Which is why you must ensure your review includes a wide range of perspectives and sources. But wait. Let us tell you that the LR is not a research paper on your desired topic. That’s right. Most university students get confused. That’s why you need to know that LR is a review of the research studies on your topic. So, don’t consider it an encyclopaedia.
However, you must act as a research analyst and ask yourself questions. How do the research findings of one study confirm? What can contrast, or extend the findings of the other analyses? What do the findings say about these various studies? And how do they overlap?
Benefits of a Strong Literature Review
Well, let us tell you, working on well-executed LR provides a solid foundation for your research. It helps you identify the key experts, questions, and methodologies in your study. Do you want to master your research paper? If so, then start gaining an in-depth understanding of your research question and surrounding areas. You can create strong research with a quality context when you analyse the existing body of knowledge.
Key Benefits of LR
You know what? Strong LR helps you convey to readers that you have a thorough understanding of your topic. So, you need to be up-to-date with the latest advancements. So guys, here are some of the benefits of a systematic dissertation review that you need to know:
- Firstly, a literature review provides essential background knowledge for your research.
- Secondly, it shows how your work contributes to the existing body of knowledge.
- Thirdly, LR identifies a gap in current research that your dissertation will address.
- Fourthly, the literature reviews, analyses and synthesises existing research.
- Most importantly, it helps you establish credibility and authority in your field.
- The literature review lays the groundwork, supporting your new arguments and insights.
How to Craft a Tempting Dissertation Literature Review?
How to write a literature review in the UK? This question must have been raised in your mind if you are an undergraduate or master’s student. Well, fair enough. You will get your answer in this guide. Your dissertation literature review is the foundation for your entire project. It demonstrates your deep understanding of the field. It positions your research within existing knowledge and identifies a gap you aim to fill. Here’s how to craft a literature review that shines:
Questions
Are you considering dissecting the literature for your research paper? How to write a literature review for accounting dissertation is the very first question that you must ask yourself. Firstly, this question can be a roadmap for any student’s success. You must avoid beginning your literature analysis before clarifying it in your mind. When you formulate your problems beforehand, you can avoid wasting your precious time on aimless reading.
Wide Search
Do you want to write a satisfactory LR? Secondly, demonstrating your ability to research relevant content from comprehensive sources can help you with that. What we would suggest is to hunt for online databases for useful dissertations. You can even check the content by using available abstracts to assess its relevance. So, now you can use all known universities, colleges, and libraries. Make sure to surf the internet for additional resources and pursue footnotes.
Effectiveness over Content
A standard error in writing a literature review is being unable to progress in flat reports of the books and journal articles. You must relate the relevant data and try to spend more time analysing the relative significance of numerous sources for your own purposes.
Key Themes
Moreover, identifying, drawing out, explaining, interpreting, and evaluating key themes is crucial for the literature that you choose to study. The patterns for uncovering data can demonstrate an actual engagement with literature and provide a scaffold to build the body of your text.
Attitude
A critical attitude is crucial when it comes to a literature review for your thesis. Nothing should be included in your literature review without first being thoroughly scrutinised, questioned, and dissected. You must know that a critical approach to all reviewed material is essential to ensuring that your review goes beyond mere description and places proper emphasis on original analysis and argumentation.
Findings
Well, being a research student has its own perks, but you must know the impact of identifying the key themes and issues for your research findings. That’s right. Demonstrate your ability to think critically about the literature. Don’t shy away from identifying weaknesses or conflicting viewpoints. This will help you suggest what you consider to be the emergent or future trends in your domain, identify deficiencies in your current analysis, and relate your position to that of others.
Reasonable Sources
So, valid sources for analysing your research are necessary, or else your paper can have a worse impact and you won’t get the right findings. You must conduct a thorough literature search using credible academic databases and reference lists of relevant articles. Make sure to aim for a balance of classic and current sources. You can even have the perk of developing a system for categorising your sources, such as thematic areas, methodological approaches, or key debates. This will help structure your review.
Categorisation
For categorization, you must write a clear and concise narrative that guides the reader through the existing research landscape. You can even select the key themes that can provide natural structuring principles in your LR. You can also categorise the available research based on relevance to RQs, theoretical paradigm, academic position, and the list goes on.
Theory
Do you know the best part of your analysis is showcasing your RQ that emerges from the gaps identified in the literature review? Therefore, the reviewed content can involve a consternation of theoretical underpinnings, paradigmatic aims, and inherent working assumptions. Explicitly express the rationale behind the visionary aspects of your position and findings by the end of the LR.
Source Provenance
When a university student gets assigned to research, it can lead some of them to distraction and lack of guidance. Most importantly, this can be quite traumatising for them, which is why highlighting connections between different studies creates a cohesive picture of your research field. A standard reference can be helpful for them. And if you’re one of those students, then you can ask yourself: How definitive is the author? Is the writer widely cited? And has a later response in the publications provided a damning critique of the work with considerable support?
Final Verdict
Your dissertation literature review is the foundation for your entire research paper, and it can demonstrate your deep understanding of the field. So, if you want your research to achieve a position, then research within existing knowledge and identify a gap you aim to fill.