Community Health & Epidemiology: Literature Reviews
What is a Literature Review?
“an account of what has been published on a topic by accredited scholars and researchers” http://www.writing.utoronto.ca/advice/specific-types-of-writing/literature-review
“a comprehensive summary and critical appraisal of the literature that is relevant to your research topic” Williamson and Whittaker (2014) Succeeding in Literature Reviews and Research Project Plans for Nursing Students
“systematic, explicit, and reproducible method for identifying, evaluating, and synthesizing the existing body of completed and recorded work produced by researchers, scholars and practitioners” Fink, A. (2005) Conducting Research Literature Reviews: From the Internet to Paper, 2nd ed. London: Sage Publications
Introduction to Literature Reviews
For more detailed information on literature reviews...
For a more detailed treatment of literature reviews in the health sciences, please visit Catherine Boden's research guide. It contains a wealth of information on the different types of reviews, focusing on systematic reviews.
5 Ways to Structure a Literature Review
- 5 Ways to Structure a Literature ReviewA helpful blog by Pat Thomson, presenting 5 different ways of structuring your literature review.
Pat offers other wonderful blog posts about the literature review process here.
Organizing your Literature Review
- Literature Search TemplateA wonderful way to keep track of what databases you searched when, and what strategies you used. Highly recommended!
More Resources on the Literature Review
Systematic Approaches to a Successful Literature Review by Call Number: LB1047.3 .B6 2016Showing you how to take a structured and organized approach to a wide range of literature review types, this book helps you to choose which approach is right for your research.
Research Skills for Medical Students by Call Number: R 850 R46 2012 HEALTH SCIENCES LIBRARYISBN: 9890857256010Not just for medical students, this book contains an excellent chapter called "Doing a Literature Review", p.31-54.
Researching Health by Call Number: R 850 R47 2007 HEALTH SCIENCES LIBRARYContains an excellent chapter called "Doing a Literature Review in Health" by Kathryn Jones, p.32-54.
The Literature Review by Call Number: LB2369 .R525 2012 EDUCATION LIBRARYOutlines practical strategies for reading and note taking, and guides the reader on how to conduct a systematic search of the available literature, and uses cases and examples throughout to demonstrate best practice in writing and presenting the review.
Telling a Research Story by Call Number: PE 1478 F34 2009 HEALTH SCIENCES LIBRARYThis is a very practical book that moves from general to specific issues in the writing of literature reviews. It opens with the telling of a research story, and touches on structure, language, style, and avoiding plagiarism.
