Review of Related Literature

A literature review follows an essay format (Introduction, Body, Conclusion.)

Guide in writing a literature review;

1. Choose a topic. Your literature review should be guided by a central research question.
2. Decide on the scope of review.
How many studies do you need to look at?
How comprehensive should it be?
How many years should it cover?
3. Select the databases you will use to conduct your searches. Make a list of the databases you will
search.
4. Conduct your search and find the literature. Review the abstracts of research studies carefully.
5. Review the literature.
What was the research question of the study you are reviewing?
What were the authors trying to discover?
Was the research funded by a source that could influence the findings?
What were the research methodologies?
Does the research seem to be complete?
Could it have been conducted more soundly?
Has this study been cited? if so, how has it been analyzed?

CONTENT OF THE REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

Writing review of related literature has its own structure. Researcher has to follow the structure
for its guided format. Like building a house, a carpenter or the engineer has to design a structure of a
house before he has to build it. Writing review of related literature follows the same procedure too.
The researcher will make or follow the procedural structure in writing review such as an introduction,
body and conclusion.
Introduction The introduction explains the focus and establishes the importance of the subject. It
discusses what kind of work has been done on the topic and identifies any controversies within the
field or any recent research which has raised questions about earlier assumptions.
The introduction can be seen as the beginning paragraph of Chapter 2, or the beginning paragraph of
the body of related literature. Example: If the topic under consideration is SHS students under Pres.
Duterte’s declaration of Martial law, the introduction can be like this: “This review will not explore the
accounts of SHS students in Visayas and Luzon but only in Mindanao (Martial Law is only
implemented in Mindanao – 2017- 2019).

When you write an introduction, you have to bear in mind that it must have a focus and has
to emphasize on the subject or topic or problem of the study. It explains what kind of study or
research has been done and its purpose too. It also describes on any controversies encompassing
the previous and recent studies incorporating the present problems under investigation. It also
provides the background of the study or research. Sometimes an introduction will summarize or
evaluate the kind of research the researcher would like to undertake or may suggest how the findings
of research will lead to further researches.

Body of Review of Related Literature The second content of the review of related literature
is the body. The body of related review of literature is oftentimes divided into major headings and
subheadings. In most cases to, the body of related literature and studies will summarize, evaluate
and assess the field of knowledge under study in current stage. It gives reports and findings on
themes, issues, topics, trends for researchers to confirm or negate. Note that if review is about a
preliminary of a research project, then the body will focus on the argument in order to justify the
issues, topics or problems under investigation.

Conclusion The conclusion will give the summary of all the evidences that are being
presented from introduction to the body of related literature and studies. Aside from that, the
conclusion will also give the precise key findings of other studies of the review in general concepts.
The conclusion for review of related literature is different from the conclusion of the entire research
findings of your study. This conclusion here is specifically for the review of related literature only. It
consists of one paragraph only summarizing the main points of all the research findings from
abstracts, theories and models used in the study or in your research.

CITING RELATED LITERATURE USING STANDARD STYLES (American Psychological

Association (APA), Modern Language Association (MLA) OR CHICAGO MANUAL STYLE)
A citation is a formal reference to a published or unpublished source that you consulted and
obtained information from while writing your research paper. The way in which you document your
sources depends on the writing style manual your professor wants you to use for the class [e.g.,
(American Psychological Association (APA), Modern Laguage Association (MLA), Chicago, Turabian,
etc.]. The act of citing sources is also your best defense against allegations of plagiarism (Baraceros,
2016).
According to this author, the following are the purpose of citation.
1. To give importance and respect to other people for what they know about the field
2. To give authority, validity and credibility to other people’s claim, conclusions and
3. arguments
4. To prove your broad and extensive reading of authentic and relevant materials about your topic
5. To permit readers to check the accuracy of your work and
6. To save yourself from plagiarism

Styles in Related Literature Citations or References

The following are the three terms used to express your appreciation for recognition of people’s
ownership of borrowed ideas (Sharp 2012) as cited by Baraceros (2016).
1. Acknowledgment – the beginning portion of the work that identifies individuals who have
contributed something to produce the paper
2. References or Bibliography – a complete list of all reading materials including books, journals,
periodical, etc. from where the borrowed ideas came from.
3. Citation or In-Text- Citation- references within the main body of the text, especially in Review of
Related Literature

Citation is also called in-text citation. It has many purposes and style which are as follows:
Four Patterns of Citation
1. Summary. The citation in this case is shortened version of the original text that is expressed in
your own language. Making the text short, you have to pick out only the most important ideas or
aspect of the text.
2. Paraphrase. This is the antithesis of the first one because, here, instead of shortening the form of
the text, you explain what the text means to you using your own words. In doing so, it is possible that
your explanations may decrease or exceed the number of words of the original text (Baraceros, 2016)
3. Short Direct quotation. Only a part of the author’s sentence, the whole sentence, or several
sentences, not exceeding 40 words, is what you can quote or repeat in writing through this citation
pattern. Since this makes you copy the exact words of the writer, it is necessary that you give the
number of the page where the readers can find the copied words.
4. Long Direct Quotation or Block Quotation or Extract. Named in many ways, this citation pattern
mane you copy the author’s exact words numbering from 40 to 100 words. Under APAA, the limit is
eight (8) lines. Placed at the center of the page with no indentation, the copied lines look like they
compose a stanza of a poem

SOURCES OF RELATED LITERATURE AND STUDIES

the sources of related literature and studies may include the following:
1. Books, encyclopedias, almanacs, and other similar references.
2. Articles published in professional journals, magazines, periodicals, newspapers, and other
publications.
3. Manuscripts, monographs, memoirs, speeches, letters and diaries.
4. Unpublished theses and dissertations.
5. The constitution, and laws and statures of the land.
6. Bulletins, circulars, and orders emanating from government offices and departments, especially
from the office of the Presidents of the Philippines and the Department of Education (DepEd).
7. Records of schools, public and private, especially reports of their activities. 8. Reports from
seminars, educational or otherwise. 9. Official reports of all kinds, educational, social, economic,
scientific, technological, political, etc. from the government and other entities.

The said sources can be categorized as:

1. Primary Sources: artifacts, autobiographies, court records, diaries, Emails, speeches, letters
interviews, letters, official reports, drawings, maps, photographs, speeches,

2. Secondary Sources: biographies, critical studies of an author's work, dictionaries, journal articles,
handbooks, magazines, newspapers, reports, textbooks,

Locating the Sources of Related Literature and Studies Generally, the sources of related
literature and studies according to Calderon & Gonzales (2015) can be accessed from the
following:
1. Libraries, either government or schools (private or public)
2. Government and private offices
3. The National Library and
4. Online websites (Aparejo, 2018)

ORGANIZING RELATED LITERATURE

[Link] Chronological Order (date/year) In organizing your related literature using chronological
method, you could write your research paper review according to when they were published. If this
approach be used, it has to be ensured that clear development of the way, location or place of where
such research are to be noted following the flow of years or specific dates. This is considered the
easiest way in organizing coherent literature reviews and studies. It features how the topic is changed
according to year or time and how such topic is thought of today (Cronin, Ryan& Coughlan, 2008).
According to Calderon & Gonzales (2015) related materials may also be cited chronologically, that is,
according to the year they were written. Materials which were written earlier should be cited first
before those which were written later. This can be done especially when citation is by author or writer.
Chronology of Events. The circled years tell the chronological arrangement of events.
[Link] broad-to-specific topic According to Cronin, Ryan & Coughlan (2008), you can also
organize your related review of literature and studies by starting it from a general issue of topic, then
lower it down to specific issues in the literature until it reaches and links to your research title,
question, research keywords, thesis statement and hypothesis. An example of this is when you start
the problem of teenage pregnancy internationally or globally. Start by establishing the trend of such
problem globally, then at national level, to your province, city or locality and to your own barangay
(Aparejo, 2010).
[Link] major models or major theories Another approach in writing coherent and organized
review of related literature and studies is by arranging it according to its significant models or major
theories. When various models or theories emerge in your studies, it is better to arrange them
according to their importance in your research. Group the articles you read and researched by
models and theories to get coherent view of your review of related literature and studies (Cronin,
Ryan & Coughlan, 2008).
[Link] prominent authors If a certain author, writer or researcher had developed a certain
innovation, model, theory or education breakthrough and then other authors or researchers continue
studying and developing it, it is good to arrange such authors by their popularity or fame. It is also
better if authors be organized according to whose famous authors they agreed upon. With this
organization, coherence of author’s view on specific issues from one author to another is vividly
followed (Cronin, Ryan& Coughlan, 2008).
[Link] contrasting schools of thought By this approach of organizing your related literature
and study,you can group together major arguments or contrasting differences that came up in your
research with researchers stressing their agreement and disagreement in their approaches and
ideas.
[Link] thematic concept or by topic The thematic concept of topic reviews refers to the related
reviews that are organized on specific topic or a concept, an issue or trend of the time. It is different
form chronological and by publication because it focuses on concept or topic rather than time and
year of publication. For instance, a review of the impact of internet to Philippine political system.
[Link] Methodological approach in the methodological approach, the focus is on the method
the researcher used. For example, the literature review focuses on the method used by the
graduating Senior High School students to raise funds for their entrepreneurship proposal or method
used to increase agricultural yields among agriculture students.
ETHICAL STANDARD IN RESEARCH
Ethical standard in research means following the right procedure/ protocol in conducting research.
Here are some points to consider the ethical standard in writing review of related literature.

Understand the Intellectual Property (IP) rights To understand the ethics of information use, you
should know the law of intellectual property rights and the law. Intellectual property (IP) refers to
creations of the mind such as inventions, literary and artistic works and symbols, names, images, and
designs used in commerce. IP is divided into two categories: Industrial property, which includes
inventions (patents), trademarks, industrial designs, and geographic indications of source; and
Copyright, which includes literary and artistic works such as novels, poems and plays, films, musical
works, artistic works such as drawings, paintings, photographs and sculptures, and architectural
designs" (Source: "What is Intellectual Property?", WIPO- World Intellectual Property Organization).

Here are the tips of maintaining the use of ethical information

• You have to cite the author/s name to give respect of credit of his/ their property. You can do it by
quoting directly or by paraphrasing. Academic ethics require that writers be credited for their work and
their writing.
• If in case you use purposely or unintentionally the work of others without giving proper credit, you
have violated the law of plagiarism.
• Your bibliography or references is good evidence to support that your review of related literature
demonstrates scholarly materials with credible evidence – references or bibliography.
• When citing other people literary work, use direct quotation by putting quotation in entire words and
cite your source. If you paraphrase other people's literary words, cite that source. If you've used the
ideas from others, cite the names of those who give you that ideas.

APA Citation Style

APA Citation: In-text and Reference Citation
American Psychological Association (APA) referencing style is the most commonly used referencing style in
the field of education. It is also known as “author-date referencing”. However, this is not the only referencing
style available. There are Chicago manual of style (CMOS), Modern Language Association Style (MLA)
Modern Humanities Research Association (MHRA), American Sociological Association (ASA), and the like. But
in the meantime, your focus is on APA 6th Edition Manual of Style.

There are two (2) things that you need to remember in using APA.
First, it is used as an in-text citation and
second, it is used in reference citation.

Let us begin on in-text citation.

The in-text citation is a reference citation that is made within the body of the text or essay (Waikato Institute of
Technology, 2010). The main question now is when are we going to use in-text citation? Practically, we use in-
text citations every time we quote, summarize, and paraphrase statements, information, and ideas that came
from others. It is a scholarly acknowledgment through giving credit who stipulated the ideas and concepts.

1. In-text citation with single author used in the beginning

Fernandez (2020), stressed that proper citation has to be observed among novice researchers.
2. In-text citation with single author used at the end
Proper usage of citation styles promotes integrity among novice researchers (Fernandez, 2020).

How about if the writer wanted to indicate the title of the source? Of course, you can do it. However, title has to
be in quotation marks.
3. In-text citation with article title
In Fernandez’s (2020) article, “Plagiarism: Writers’ Crime”, stressed that proper citation has to be observed
among novice researchers.
4. In-text citation without quotation
In Fernandez’s (2020) book, The Secrets of Plagiarism, discussed on ways plagiarism can be avoided
5. In-text citation in the middle of the statement
Fernandez (2020) attested that citation can be used only at the beginning and end of the sentence, whereas
Munez (2020) claimed otherwise.

When do we use “et al.” in our citation? “Et al.” is a Latin term for “et alia” which means “and others”. This is
used when you have multiple authors. Multiple authorship is authorship composed of six (6) or more authors.
Thus, when you have less than six authors, you need to write their surname. If you use in-text citation at the
beginning, just connect their surname with a comma and “and”. However, if it is at the end of the statement,
you connect the authors’ surname with the use of comma and ampersand.
6. In-text citation with three (3) authors (beginning)
Fernandez, Munez, and Valencia (2020), attested that citation can be used only at the beginning and end of
the statement.
7. In-text citation with three (3) authors (end)
It was attested that citation can be used only at the beginning and end of the statement (Fernandez, Munez, &
Valencia, 2020).
8. In-text citation with six (6) or more authors
Fernandez et al. (2020), attested that citation can be used only at the beginning and end of the statement.
9. In-text citation with six (6) authors (end)
It was attested that citation can be used only at the beginning and end of the statement (Fernandez, et al.,
2020).

1. Book Citation What is the correct APA citation for the following book?
Title: The Impact of Climate Change Author: John Smith Publisher: Routledge Year: 2020
Answer: Smith, J. (2020). The impact of climate change. Routledge.
 2. Journal Article Citation What is the correct APA citation for the following journal
article?
Title: The Benefits of Renewable Energy
Author: Kate Johnson
Journal: Journal of Environmental Studies
Volume: 20
Issue: 1 Pages: 12-20 Year: 2019
Answer: Johnson, K. (2019). The benefits of renewable energy. Journal of Environmental
Studies, 20(1), 12-20.

3. Website Citation What is the correct APA citation for the following website?
Title: COVID-19
Organization: World Health Organization
Date: February 10, 2022
URL: (link unavailable)
Answer: World Health Organization. (2022, February 10). COVID-19. (link unavailable)

4. In-Text Citation What is the correct APA in-text citation for the following sources?
- One author: Smith, J. (2020)
- Two authors: Johnson, K., & Williams, J. (2019)
- Three or more authors: Johnson, K., Williams, J., & Brown, L. (2019
Answers: - (Smith, 2020) - (Johnson & Williams, 2019) - (Johnson et al., 2019)