Joining a Literature Conversation

In essence, writing a literature review is a means of joining a conversation about a scholarly topic of interest.



In the research process, you locate and summarize articles that relate to your selected topic. Then you write a research paper or dissertation that further expands on the conversation.



In the Module 3 discussion, you did some preliminary work on your mini research paper proposal by selecting a topic, identifying problems related to the topic, and composing potential research question(s).



In this assignment, you will conduct a preliminary literature review to learn more about the topic and problem you are considering. Use the college databases to explore peer-reviewed journals to determine the availability of information on the topic.



For the purposes of this assignment, select no more than three articles.



Part 1: Organizing the Articles

In the presentations, it was suggested that you create a table to organize the potential articles for your literature review.



View/Download the Article Organization Table Template. download



Part 2: Organizing the Main Ideas and Themes

Next, create a synthesis matrix to assist with recognizing patterns across multiple articles and resources.



View/Download the Synthesis Matrix Template. download



With both the table and matrix, you can conceptualize how articles “fit together” as well as how to organize the content in support of original ideas. To truly synthesize, a scholarly writer must combine separate findings into a “new whole” and draw a trustworthy conclusion (Bow Valley College, 2018).



What patterns or themes do you see in the articles you have collected so far?

How can the articles be used to help solidify the research problem and question?

Part 3: Writing a Preliminary Literature Review

Using the themes you have uncovered in the literature so far, synthesize the three articles into a preliminary literature review. Write 1 paragraph per article with 5-7 sentences per paragraph. Use the preliminary review to evaluate what research has already been done and to further narrow the topic and clarify the research question(s). Review the. following for more information on “How to Synthesize.” The final product should be 3-4 pages (not including the title and references pages).



How to Synthesize:



A synthesis of the literature is not a laundry list of summaries. Instead, it is a combination of ideas organized by themes to reveal what is known and what is not known about your selected topic. By determining the relationships among the themes, you will be able to interpret, analyze, and arrive at your own conclusions related to the content.



To get started, examine the themes you noted in the Synthesis Matrix. The themes are a good starting point for organizing the literature review. As you outline and write, consider how each article relates to one or multiple themes. Make connections between the themes and the content of the articles. Also take note of gaps in the content. It is in these relationships that you, as the researcher, will discover “something new.”



In this process, expect to play with the ideas. This important research component is usually not accomplished in final form on the first attempt.