A literature review is a process of analyzing and organizing scholarly literature on a topic. In a literature review, you are not establishing your own argument. Instead, you are gathering what has already been written on your topic: synthesizing the arguments, perspectives, or themes, and summarizing the sources and how they apply to your research question.
Access the tutorial below for instructions and tips on how to write a literature review. Learn how to read and organize your sources, determine the scope of your paper, and write your content.
The Literature Review is a written narrative that examines, critically evaluates, summarizes, and synthesizes information from the selected research studies with the intent of developing a clear response and answer to the proposed research question.
When writing a literature review:
Literature review elements can be arranged in various ways by grouping research by:
For help formatting your dissertation, check out the Library and Academic Support department's APA guide:
Feedback on your dissertation chapters is available from the library's online platform, Brainfuse. You can submit up to 10 pages at a time for review and/or use the live chat to get feedback on specific issues or sections in real time.
For additional resources on writing, check out the CSP Writing Center website or reach out to your program's advisors and instructors.
You can find examples of both the CSP Doctorate in Kinesiology and the Doctorate in Education programs in Digital Commons, the university's digital repository. Look at your program in Digital Commons to find examples of previous student work.
Additionally, you can find a wide range of dissertations from programs all over the world in the ProQuest Dissertation database. Note that requirements may vary by institution, so not all dissertations may match your program's requirements.
