Tip of the Week #87

By Bernard Appiah | 24 July 2012

If your paper has a literature review section, this section should not only say what other researchers have found. It also should show how their research relates to yours.

Add a critical assessment

Posted by Richard de Grijs at 25 July 2012 09:31 AM

Dear Bernard,

Thanks for the good tip. I would add that the best literature reviews try to synthesize the literature rather than simply list previous results; since not all previous results may still be relevant, a critical assessment of the current state of the field will make your paper better :-)

Hope this helps!
Richard

Add a critical assessment

Posted by Maurice Bolo at 25 July 2012 01:50 PM

It may also be helpful to add that the literature review should also help in identifying the gaps that your research are trying to address and how it relates to past research and take forward the discussion/debates

Maurice