How to write a literature review - my simple 5 step process!
Summary
TLDRThis video script offers a structured approach to writing a literature review for PhD students, emphasizing clarity on research purpose and effective organization. It outlines five key steps: defining the research question, identifying relevant topics, conducting literature searches, synthesizing information to refine the review structure, and finally, writing with a focus on clarity and purpose. The script also highlights the importance of daily reading habits and using tools like Excel for organization, aiming to demystify the literature review process.
Takeaways
- 📚 Step 1: Be crystal clear on your research question and why you are conducting the research. This forms the foundation of your literature review.
- 🗣️ Consult with your supervisor to ensure you understand their vision and direction for the research.
- 🔍 Step 2: Identify the broad topics needed to answer your research question. Use existing dissertations in your field as a guide.
- 📖 Look at the history and development of your research area to understand its evolution and current state.
- 💡 Step 3: Conduct literature searches on each identified topic using Google Scholar and other databases. Organize your findings.
- 📝 Create summaries of key papers, noting the main findings, challenges, and unique aspects. Store these in an easily searchable format like Excel.
- 🗂️ Use tools like Mendeley or EndNote for reference management and organization.
- 🧠 Step 4: Allow your brain to digest and synthesize the information from the literature, identifying patterns and correlations.
- 🔧 Refine the structure of your literature review based on your understanding of the literature. Add subheadings to organize your thoughts.
- ✍️ Step 5: Write consistently and break down the writing process into manageable chunks. Focus on clarity and how each piece of literature relates to your research question.
Q & A
What is the main purpose of a literature review in the context of a PhD thesis?
-The main purpose of a literature review in a PhD thesis is to provide an overview of the existing research in the field, identify gaps in the current knowledge, and establish the significance and context of the research being conducted.
Why is it important to be clear on the research question before starting a literature review?
-Being clear on the research question is crucial because it forms the foundation of the literature review. It helps in identifying relevant literature, focusing the search, and ensuring that the review is directly related to the research objectives.
What role does a supervisor play in the initial stages of a literature review?
-A supervisor often provides guidance on the direction of the research, helps in refining the research question, and ensures that the literature review aligns with the academic expectations and the overall research project.
How can one identify the main topics to be included in a literature review?
-One can identify main topics by considering the research question, exploring the boundaries and interfaces of related subjects, and examining how other dissertations in similar fields have structured their literature reviews.
What is a suggested method for organizing the literature found during the review process?
-A suggested method is to use an Excel spreadsheet to create a 'cheat sheet' with references, authors, topic areas, and key findings or notes that are easily searchable for quick reference during writing.
Why is it recommended to read literature regularly during the literature review process?
-Regular reading helps in digesting information, allowing the brain to pick up patterns, synthesize results, and make connections between different pieces of research, which is essential for formulating a comprehensive literature review.
How can one determine the number of papers to include in each topic area during the literature review?
-The number of papers to include depends on the subject area and the depth of research required. The speaker suggests finding 20 to 50 papers per topic, but it's important to ensure that each paper contributes something novel to the review.
What is the significance of creating subheadings in a literature review after reading the literature?
-Creating subheadings allows for a more granular organization of the literature review, guided by the patterns, correlations, and disagreements found in the literature. It helps in structuring the writing process and ensures a focused discussion on each aspect of the research.
What is the recommended approach to writing the actual content of a literature review?
-The recommended approach is to break down the writing into chunks, focusing on two or three subheadings a day, and aiming for quantity over perfection initially. After drafting, one should go back and edit for clarity, coherence, and accuracy.
How can one ensure that their literature review writing is effective and contributes to the overall research?
-One can ensure effectiveness by always relating the findings back to the research question or 'why' of the study, providing a critical analysis of the literature, and highlighting how the research fills gaps or contributes to the field.
Outlines
📚 Introduction to Structuring a Literature Review
The speaker introduces the topic of writing a literature review, emphasizing its importance and the challenges it presents. They offer a five-step structure to guide the process, starting with clarifying the research question and the 'why' behind the PhD work. The audience is encouraged to subscribe for more PhD and career-related content. The first step involves aligning with the supervisor to understand the research direction and ensuring that the literature review is well-focused.
🔍 Identifying Topics and Research Themes
The speaker discusses the second step in the literature review process, which involves identifying the main topics and themes relevant to the research question. They suggest looking at other dissertations for structure inspiration and considering the intersections of subjects that are central to the research. The speaker shares their personal experience of combining solar technology, renewable energy, and colloid and surface science to answer their research question. They also mention the importance of organizing the literature search results effectively, using tools like Excel for note-taking and reference management.
📝 Organizing Literature Search and Initial Thoughts
In this paragraph, the speaker delves into the third step of the literature review process, which is conducting the literature search. They recommend using Google Scholar and grouping research themes under the previously identified headings. The speaker describes their personal method of printing out papers for reading and summarizing key findings on the back of each paper. They also highlight the importance of creating an Excel document for organizing literature with searchable notes, which will be beneficial for the writing process.
🧠 Letting the Brain Make Connections
The fourth step is about allowing the brain to recognize patterns and make connections from the literature read. The speaker advises against forcing the process and instead suggests regular reading to let the brain naturally synthesize the information. They recommend revisiting the structure after reading a significant amount of literature and adjusting the headings and subheadings based on the insights gained. This step is crucial for refining the literature review's organization before writing.
✍️ Writing the Literature Review
The final step, as described by the speaker, is the act of writing the literature review. They acknowledge the difficulty of writing and suggest creating a daily writing routine, using an 'aim for words, edit for perfection' approach. The speaker emphasizes the importance of relating each part of the literature review back to the research question and purpose. They also advise on seeking feedback from the research supervisor and considering professional editing services to refine the writing.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Literature Review
💡Research Question
💡Supervisor
💡Venn Diagram
💡Google Scholar
💡Excel
💡Mendeley
💡Chronological Order
💡Subheadings
💡Writing Process
Highlights
Introduction of five steps to structure a literature review for PhD students.
Emphasis on clarity of purpose in research to guide the literature review process.
Importance of aligning with academic supervisor's vision and understanding the research question.
Need for a clear statement of research objectives to filter relevant literature.
Identifying key topics to address the research question through literature review.
Suggestion to look at other dissertations for structuring literature review sections.
Exploration of research at the boundaries of subjects for a comprehensive literature review.
Use of chronological order to understand the evolution of research within a field.
Initiation of literature search using Google Scholar and grouping research themes.
Organizing literature with a two-prong approach including physical printing and digital Excel summaries.
Creating an Excel document with searchable notes for efficient literature review writing.
Importance of reading literature regularly to allow the brain to pick up patterns and make connections.
Refining the literature review structure based on synthesized information from readings.
Writing process involves breaking down tasks into manageable chunks and focusing on progress over perfection.
Incorporating feedback from research supervisors to improve literature review content and language.
Highlighting the role of literature review as a warm-up act for the main PhD research.
Encouragement to share personal experiences and tips for writing a literature review in the comments.
Transcripts
hello my beautiful phd friends so today
we're going to talk about how to write a
literature review
they are long they are frustrating to
write but today i'm going to give you
five things
five steps that you can use to structure
your literature review
process okay let's talk about that if
you're new to this channel please
remember to subscribe and hit that bell
notification i'm going to talk about all
things phd careers
um getting a phd all the tips and tricks
that i learned to finish within three
years write my literature review
write the thesis everything so remember
to subscribe all right let's talk about
the literature review
can be a little bit daunting can't it
okay
step one of writing a literature review
you need to be absolutely crystal clear
on your why like why are
you actually doing this research because
that is the fundamentals that will form
your literature review
you need to make sure that you speak
with your supervisor as well
so a lot of times a literary review and
a beginning of a kind of a project
is the brainchild of an academic
supervisor
and they invite you on as a phd student
or you apply
um and then you kind of do their work
and you kind of
you know explore their ideas while also
incorporating your own
um the one thing i would say is that you
have to make sure with your supervisor
you understand
exactly what's going on in their mind so
step one here
is work out your research question work
out your why
why are you doing a phd why are you
writing a literature review
what are you searching for because being
absolutely crystal clear on those things
will mean
that when you come to write and do your
um your literature searches
that you'll just know exactly what
doesn't answer the question what's not
relevant
but you really need to get crystal clear
with your supervisor
on what your research question really is
so for me i needed to know if i could
make a solar cell
from an aqueous dispersion of
nanoparticles
so like uh yeah like a solar paint or a
solar ink
can i create a solar ink that would make
and generate electricity
when used as the active layer in solar
cells um so that was my physical
chemistry and kind of like surface
science
topics that i needed to combine and so
yes i needed to make sure that all of my
supervisors all three of them
were on board that they all agreed on
where i was heading
and so yes getting crystal clear
on why you're writing this literature
review and getting that in just like a
statement like a
couple sentences statement will be so
beneficial to you
there's step one okay step two
is when um i really start to think about
the topics that i need to bring together
to answer that question
so in my case it was solar technology it
was renewable energy
it was the mini emulsion process um
it was colloid and surface science and
solar cell testing like those are the
things really i needed to bring together
to answer this research question now for
you it may be a little bit different
maybe um you know you need to look at
the kind of
large overall headers we're not talking
about sub-headers here so you know i
imagine literature review
and then all of the headers underneath
that split up the large topics
there's a kind of a nice way to get an
idea of
what sort of topics you need is look at
other dissertations
in a similar field so i went away and i
found
a lot of stuff from europe a lot of
theses from europe and i kind of looked
and went well
well how are they splitting up their
literature review their introduction to
their thesis
and maybe i can use that to guide what i
do
with my thesis so a lot of the time
research
the especially cutting-edge research
happens at the boundaries of
inter of um subjects the interfaces of
subjects and topics
and so you know you need to explore the
appropriate parts of each topic
so that you can answer your research
question and you don't need to do
everything in detail but that is one way
to work out
you know if if my research question was
a venn diagram
which overlapping topics do i sort of um
sit in between and then you can kind of
use that to guide your top level headers
another way is schools of thought so if
some people agree one thing and some
people think another thing you can also
talk you know think about splitting up
your literature review in terms of those
topics
um and also just chronological order so
a great thing for me was to look at the
history of solar cells look at the
history
of the sorts of cells that i was
creating and go well they started here
how did they get to the efficiency
they're currently at and how am i going
to push that
beyond the efficiency that's currently
reported in
the literature and so uh yeah this by
the way
isn't set in stone yet but what but like
initially thinking about how am i going
to split things up how
am i going to organize my thoughts
really i guess
is the main point how are my thoughts
going to come together in this
literature review
and look this isn't like so set in stone
yet but it's a place for you to start
because the next step
is going on and actually taking those
large topics and doing your searches
okay step three is now like now you've
got your topics and your venn diagrams
and all that sort of stuff
you've got to start to think okay what
do i actually need to search for
google scholar by far is the best
um i just get onto google scholar and i
type in
you know the mini emulsion process and
look up that
i look at advances in solar technology i
look at advances in
aqueous based solar cells all of those
things is what i did
and i just started grouping those
uh research themes like under the
headings i've already think that i'm
gonna sort of like organize my
literature review that way
so um yeah i just take the heading and i
just search the literature
for themes for questions for outcomes
for results
that that kind of sit under that large
theme
um and the thing about this
is you are going to generate an absolute
bucket load of papers
of theses of other dissertations that
are written
and so you need a way to organize it and
it's at this point
that you really need to work out for you
what is the best way to
organize your literature i took a
two-prong approach
now i don't know why but i cannot
focus and read on a computer so i
literally printed out
nearly every research paper that i
wanted to read
and i used to read them on the commute
to work on the bus
or you know if i had a spare evening or
a spare couple of hours i then had them
in my bag and i could get them out and
read them
and what i did then is on the back of
the first
page is i wrote out the main finding who
did it what they found any challenges
if there was anything a particular note
you know because each research paper
needs to have something novel something
new about it
so i made sure that i tried to identify
each one of those things
and i just listed them you know three or
four bullet points on the back of the
first page
that i printed out and then what i did
after that is after i kind of got a
stack of five or six of them i
went to excel and i just put in that
that detail so i had like a
um reference i had the authors i had um
uh like the topic area you know the
broad theme that i wanted it to fit
under in my literature review
and then i just had a couple of notes
like those four or five things
but i made sure that i wrote stuff that
i wanted to search for later so
normally when you're writing your
literature review you're like oh what is
that paper
that said this and then i made sure that
i kind of included that in the notes
section you know that little
unique thing so what about that paper
that said they used a different
surfactant
um to create the nanoparticles and i'll
go in and i'll say different surfactant
and i'll make
sure that i try to um yeah include notes
that are searchable
it's easier said than done but a lot of
the time you know it does it does really
really help you just go control
f in excel and you can find um you know
the papers that you want to find
so search for papers under a topic
and then print them off if you want to
or if you're fine um reading them on the
computer that's fine
but then you have to transform that into
a little like cliff notes a little
summary
in excel and how i kind of try to find i
mean there's no hard and fast rule right
but i try to find say 20 to
30 maybe 50 even papers
on each one of those subjects and that
will depend on your
subject area of how many that you'll
actually need
but um that's what i did and uh yeah i
you know
quite often then i would you know even a
year later i would come across a paper
and go oh i didn't know about this and
i'll slot it in
to my excel document but documentation
is so very
important organize you can use mendeley
is what i use to organize all my stuff
and also after note
is another way to organize references
but really that excel document that
you're creating for yourself with the
notes that you can easily search will be
the key and will be the thing
that will just make you feel so much
more relaxed when you come to writing
your thesis
and that is almost the next part let's
talk about the next step let's talk
about step number four
okay step number four doesn't happen
for quite a while because step number
four is after you've searched the
literature and you've started to digest
that information now the great thing is
your brain
is designed to pick up patterns it's
designed for survival
and the way people survive is by picking
up patterns in nature
and in this case you're picking up
patterns in the literature that you're
reading
now you just kind of let that mole
around you know part of the academic
process and this is the kind of first
part is just to start letting your brain
make those connections start letting
your brain you know
see it find overlapping topics and areas
and just let your brain relax and and
you know read stuff and don't try to
force it
um just read regularly you know all
about these steps and do it every day so
if you're reading
literature read literature every single
day even if it's just for half an hour
but you've got to get in the habit of
reading um and then just let it kind of
sit
what you do then is once you kind of
like start formulating your own
topics and seeing the boundaries and
interfaces of different papers
is go back to your structure you know
step two when we're looking at the broad
themes
is does that still make sense as a
structure for your literature review
um it will probably need some tweaking
but the next thing you can do then is go
in under each topic that you may or may
not have tweet
and add subheadings so now we're like
literature review
heading subheadings um and so the
subheadings now are essentially
guided by what you've learned by reading
the literature
by letting your brain kind of you know
synthesize the results find
patterns correlations disagreements you
know that sort of stuff
is so important and that's the
subheading that's kind of like a little
bit more granular
of your literature review and so that's
really step four is
take a step back think about it let your
mind make connections and then put in
those subheadings to those topics
that's when you'll be able then to have
a structure
that you can then just put words under
but until you've got that structure
you're going to be trying to do
structure and words at the same time and
potentially you're just going to end up
confusing yourself
so make sure that you just spend a bit
of time after you've read literature
after you've you know read
50 to 60 maybe even 200 papers in total
just just make sure that that structure
that you're about to write on is there
because that will make your
your kind of writing process so much
easier
and now that's the last bit step five
let's talk about
writing the words there's no two ways
about it
but writing can be a massive pain in the
ass writing uh is
just challenging right sitting down
undistracted
for hours at a time to write now go
check out my other video which is about
how to write your phd thesis in two
months and it's a similar sort of stuff
that applies
so design a day that gets you to your
result
for me that was at least three hours or
so
worth of writing every single day split
up into an hour and a half and an hour
and an hour
um and you just have to write okay
your mind you know you will have to dip
in and out of the literature
and your your cheat sheet your excel
cheat sheet every so often
but really this is about you sharing
your knowledge
and so you do that uh by kind of just
formulating these paragraphs in terms of
this is what someone's found
this is how it fits and this is how it
relates to my why
and you kind of just do that for each
theme and you essentially
want to give you know the literature
review really is about giving
the person who's reading the literary
review an overview of
the the area that you want to um
research and why you're doing it so
trying to always draw it back to that
why
to the purpose of the research will be
really good and so
um as you're writing about each topic
under each subheading
you know you can say these people found
this which is interesting because then
you add your own little flavor
and then this relates to my why you know
which is uh indicative that we will be
able to get closer to our research or
will
help us understand this that or the
other or there's a gap in
the research field which i'm i'm hoping
to fill with this research
and so yeah that really is the writing
component
is break it down into chunks so i used
to like to give myself say two or three
subheadings a day
and just tap out words right don't aim
for perfection
aim for words and then go back and edit
afterwards
perfection kills progress like nothing
else aim for good
get your research supervisor to look
over your
um your different topics and chapters
and give you feedback not only
on the content um but also on
the you know the uh grammatical errors
that they pick up you know that's
something that you shouldn't really have
to worry about
and if you do need to if english is your
second language consider getting a
an editor just to pick up all those
really frustrating little um
typos that people can normally put in
even as a native english speaker
that was one of my feedback from my
thesis is they said that there was lots
of annoying typos in there
i apologize that is essentially
how to write a literature review um it's
not
nice um it's you know it's a combination
of
hard work sitting down in writing but
also sort of
mental uh gymnastics where you're just
always trying to formulate new
ideas and really this is a warm-up act
to
what your phd thesis and your phd
research will be
because it really is your brain that
will produce
the the unique connections that will
make your
research novel new interesting and add
to the field
that your question your research
proposal sits in so
yes those are the five
steps to write a literature review i
hope it's helpful good luck
let me know in the comments what you
would add um to
those five steps or if there's anything
that you've picked up while writing your
literature review that you'd like to
share
uh with other people and i shall see you
in the next video
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