CPE 421
METHODS OF RESEARCH
CHAPTER 2:
Review of Related
Literature
Presented by Group 2
Objectives
At the end of this chapter, students should be
able to develop a comprehensive and systematic
literature review that identifies a researchable
topic, organizes relevant scholarly sources, and
positions their proposed study within existing
research.
Identify a Conduct Organize and
Research Systematic Synthesize
Topic literature scholarly
searches sources
CPE 421
METHODS OF RESEARCH
PART 1: The
Research Topic
What is it?
EXAMPLES:
• A research topic is the
SUBJECT or SUBJECT ▪ "Faculty teaching“
MATTER of a proposed
▪ "Organizational creativity“
study.
▪ "Psychological stress“
• It is the CENTRAL IDEA to ▪ "At-risk children in junior
learn about or explore. high"
Starting Point:
Identifying your topic
STEP 1: Draft a working Title
• “My Study is about …”
• Keep it Straightforward
STEP 2: Pose as a question
• What question are we
answering?
EXAMPLES:
• "What brings people to tourist sites
in the Midwest?“
• "What does it mean to be Arabic in
U.S. society?"
DRAFTING
YOUR
TITLE
Why draft a title Early?
Grounds for your
Research
Keeps you focused
Easier to Communicate
to others
BE BRIEF AND
01 AVOID WASTING
WORDS
ELIMINATE
02 UNECESSARY
WORDS
Writing Effective
Titles (Wilkinson,
USE SINGLE OR
1991) 03 DOUBLE TITLE FORMAT
EXAMPLE:
04 A. "Teacher Burnout in Urban Schools“
B. "An Ethnography: Understanding a Child’s
Perception of War"
MORE EXAMPLES
A Review of Flood Monitoring Technologies
Flood Monitoring System: A Real-Time IoT Implementation
A Study of Smart Farming Techniques
Smart Farming System: An IoT and ML-Based Approach
Disaster Risk Reduction Methods
Disaster Risk Reduction System: An Automated Early
Olivia Wilso
Warning Platform
Can Your Topic Be
Researched?
A topic CAN be researched if:
Participants are
willing and Available
Resources Exists for
Data Collection
Time is sufficient for
sustained analysis.
Tools and Programs
are available
Should Your Topic Be Researched?
Adds to the Replicates Lifts Voices of
Existing Body of studies with marginalized
Knowledge new samples
Addresses Transforms ideas Aligns with your
social Justice in the field career goals.
CPE 421
METHODS OF RESEARCH
PART 2: The
Literature Review
What is a Literature Review?
A literature review is a systematic and CORE COMPONENTS
critical synthesis of existing scholarly • Empirical research studies
work related to a research problem. (primary emphasis)
• Conceptual and
It goes beyond summarizing studies by
methodological
organizing prior research into
discussions
meaningful themes, patterns, and gaps
• Relevant theories and
that justify the need for the present
frameworks
study.
Purpose
To synthesize, not enumerate.
A Literature Review:
Integrates Identifies Positions the
findings trends, capstone project
across studies inconsistencies, within existing
and gaps research
Multiple
Thematic Critical
Sources
Organization Synthesis
(Studies)
Why Conduct a
Literature Review?
Shares1 RESULTS of related studies
Problem
Relates study to ongoing DIALOGUE
FILLS GAPS and extends research
Establishes IMPORTANCE
Provides BENCHMARK for comparison
Creates FRAMEWORK for research
CPE 421
METHODS OF RESEARCH
The Use of the
Literature
Literature Review
• Must be brief and provide a summary of the major studies on the research
problem.
• Keep it short —say 20 to 30 pages in length— as it will tell the readers that the
student is aware of the literature on the topic and the latest writings.
• Another approach is to develop a detailed outline of the topics and potential
references that will later be developed into an entire chapter which might run
from 20 to 60 pages or so.
• The best advice is to seek the opinion of your adviser or faculty members as to
how they would like to see the literature addressed.
Literature review in a journal article
Quantitative Research
• An abbreviated form of that found in a dissertation or master’s
thesis. It typically is contained in a section called “Related
Literature” and follows the introduction to a study.
Qualitative Research
• The literature review may be found in a separate section,
included in the introduction, or threaded throughout the study.
Regardless of the form, another consideration is how the literature might be
reviewed, depending on whether a qualitative, quantitative, or mixed
methods approach has been selected.
Forms of the Literature Review
The literature review can take several forms such as:
1. Integration of the topic’s related studies.
2. Criticize previous works.
3. Building bridges between related topics.
4. Identify central issues in a field.
Most of the applications are focused on integrating knowledge, organizing it from
general topics to narrower ones and summarizing issues with the exception of
criticizing previous scholarly works.
The Use of the Literature
In qualitative research, inquirers use the literature in manner consistent with the
assumptions of learning from the participant and not prescribing the questions that
need to be answered from the researcher’s standpoint.
The Use of the Literature
In quantitative research, it is used to introduce a problem or describe in detail the
existing literature in a section titled “Related Literature” or “Review of Literature”.
The researcher can introduce a theory, describe the theory that will be used, and
suggest why it is useful theory to examine.
The literature is used as a framework for the research questions or hypotheses.
The Use of the Literature
In mixed methods, The research uses either a qualitative or quantitative approach
to the literature depending on the type of strategy being used.
In a sequential approach, the literature is presented in each phase in a way
consistent with the method being used.
Ex: Study begins with a quantitative phase then the researcher includes a
literature review that will help to establish a rationale for the research questions
or hypotheses.
Ex: Study begins with a qualitative phase then the researcher may incorporate it
more into the end of the study which is an inductive approach.
CPE 421
METHODS OF RESEARCH
Design Techniques and
Steps in Conducting a Literature Review
Literature Review
• It means locating and summarizing the studies about a topic.
• Often these are research studies (since you are conducting a research study),
but they may also include conceptual articles or opinion pieces that provide
frameworks for thinking about topics.
Steps in conducting a literature review
• Regardless of the type of study, several steps are useful in conducting a
literature review.
• There is no single way to conduct a literature review, but many scholars
proceed in a systematic fashion to capture, evaluate, and summarize the
literature.
Steps in conducting a literature review
1. Begin by identifying key words. These key words may emerge in identifying a
topic or may result from preliminary readings.
2. Begin searching databases for journals and books. Most major libraries have
computerized databases and focus initially on journals and books related to
the topic.
3. Locate about 50 reports of research in articles or books related to research on
your topic.
Steps in conducting a literature review
4. Skim and collect those that are central to the research topic.
5. Begin to design a literature map where groupings of the literature on the topic that
illustrates how your study will add to the existing literatures and its position within
the larger body of research.
6. Begin to draft a summary of the most relevant articles. Summaries are combined
into the final literature review for your proposal or research study. Include precise
references to the literature using an appropriate style guide such as APA format.
Steps in conducting a literature review
7. Assemble the literature review, structure it thematically or organize it by
important concepts. End the literature with a summary of the major themes
and suggest how your particular study further adds to the literature and
addresses a gap in the themes. This summary should also point toward the
methods that need to be undertaken to add to the literature.
Searching Computerized Databases
What are Computerized Databases?
• Online collections of academic
research
• Include journals, books,
conferences, dissertations
• Help find credible, peer-reviewed
sources quickly
Why Use Academic Databases?
• Saves time
• Provides reliable sources
• Uses standardized search terms
• Avoids unreliable web
information
ERIC Database
• Educational Resources Information
Center (ERIC)
• Focus: Education research
• Free and online
• Over 1.2 million records
Website:
[Link]
Using ERIC Effectively
• Uses descriptors (controlled keywords)
• Steps
• Search your topic
• Open a related article
• Identify descriptors used
• Search again using those descriptors
Google Scholar
• Broad, multidisciplinary academic
search engine
• Includes journal articles, theses, books
• Shows citations and related articles
Website:
• [Link]
PubMed Database
• Focus: Health and biomedical sciences
• Managed by the U.S. National Library of
Medicine
• Uses MeSH terms (Medical Subject
Headings) for searching
Website:
• [Link]
ProQuest Database
• Commercial academic database
• Provides access to multiple databases in
one platform
• Includes ERIC, dissertations, health, and
social sciences
Website:
• [Link]
PsycINFO Database
• Focus: Psychology and related disciplines
• Uses a Thesaurus of Psychological Index
Terms
• Covers education, medicine, sociology,
and law
Website:
• [Link]
Sociological Abstracts
• Focus: Sociology and social sciences
• Indexes journals, dissertations, and
conference papers
Website:
• [Link]
abstracts
Social Sciences
Citation Index (SSCI)
• Tracks citation history of research
studies
• Helps identify influential articles and
authors
Website:
• [Link]
Priority for
Selecting
Literature
Material
PRIORITIES
1 1 3 4
Peer-Reviewed Books and Research
Literature Syntheses Journal Articles Monographs Conference Papers
• Includes encyclopedias and • Reports original research • Summarize scholarly literature •Presented at academic
review articles studies on a topic conferences
• Provides an overview of • Includes data collection and • Written by single or multiple • Often contain the latest
existing research analysis authors research findings
• Helps understand key • Reviewed by experts before • Includes edited books with • May not yet be published in
concepts, theories, and trends publication chapters by experts journals
Examples: Encyclopedias,
Annual Review journals
PRIORITIES
PRIORITIES
1 5 6
Web-Based Sources
Web-Based Sources
Dissertations
Dissertations
• Includes encyclopedias and • Reports original research
• Includes encyclopedias and review articles • Reports original research studies
review articles • Provides an overview of studies • Includes data collection and
• Provides an overview of • Includes data collection and
existing research analysis
existing research • Helps understand key analysis • Reviewed by experts before
• Helps understand key • trends
concepts, theories, and Reviewed by experts before publication
concepts, theories, and trends Encyclopedias,
Examples: publication
Examples: Encyclopedias,Annual Review journals
Annual Review journals
A literature map of the
Research and Abstracting
Studies
Presented by Cedric Setimo
Organize the literature
• This organization enables a person to understand how the proposed study
adds to, extends, or replicates research already completed.
• A useful approach for this step is to design a literature map.
Literature Map
• It has been a useful tool for students to use when organizing their review of the
literature for making presentations to graduate committees or summarizing the
literature for a scholarly presentation or a journal article publication.
• This map is a visual summary of the research that has been conducted by
others.
• Maps are organized in different ways.
• hierarchical structure
• Flow Chart Structure
• series of circles
Hierarchy Structure
A top-down presentation of the
literature, ending at the bottom with the
proposed study.
Flow Chart Structure
The reader understands the literature as
unfolding from left to right with the farthest
right-hand section advancing a proposed
study.
Series of Circles
each circle representing a body of literature
and the intersection of the circles the place in
which the future research is indicated.
Abstract
studies
Abstract
• A brief review of the literature (typically in a short paragraph) that
summarizes major elements, to enable a reader to understand the basic
features of the article.
Developing an abstract
• Researchers need to consider what material to extract and summarize.
• A good summary of a research study reported in a journal might include
the following points:
• Mention the problem being addressed.
• State the central purpose or focus of the study.
• Briefly state information about the sample, population, or subjects.
• Review key results that relate to the proposed study
CPE 421
METHODS OF RESEARCH
Style Manuals
What are Style Manuals?
POPULAR STYLE MANUALS:
• They provide guidelines for
creating a scholarly style of ▪ APA 7th edition, 2020
a manuscript.
▪ IEEE, 2025
• Ensure consistent format ▪ MLA 9th edition, 2021
for citing references, ▪ Chicago Manual 18th
creating headings, edition, 2024
presenting tables and
figures, and using
nondiscriminatory language.
CPE 421
METHODS OF RESEARCH
IEEE Style
Considerations
In-text Citation
• Numbered sequential
citations in order
mentioned.
• Square brackets around
numbers (e.g., [1], [2]).
• End of sentence placing
preferred; After author
or relevant information.
End-of-text Citation
• Reference list placed at
the end of document.
• Ordered numerically in
order of citation.
• [1] A. Author, “Title of
Article,” Abbrev. Title of
Journal vol. x, no. x, pp.
xxx-xxx, Month Year.
Headers/Section Titles
• Format is based on hierarchy.
• Primary: Centered and
numbered with Roman
numerals.
• Secondary: Left-aligned,
italicized, capitalized, labeled
with a capital letter and
period (e.g., A.).
Headers/Section Titles
• Tertiary: Left-aligned,
italicized, numbered
with Arabic numerals or
lowercase letters
followed by a
parenthesis; text may
begin on the same line.
Tables and Figures
• In-text: Must be cited in
numerical order in the
main text. "Fig." for
figures, "Table" for
tables.
• Placement: As close as
possible to first citation.
Tables and Figures
• Figure caption: Placed
below the figure.
• "Fig.X. Caption title."
• Table titles: Centered
and above the table.
• "Table X. Title of table."
CPE 421
METHODS OF RESEARCH
Definition of
Terms
Definition of Terms Section
It identifies and defines terms that
readers need to understand a
study.
Terms that go beyond common
language need to be defined.
Terms must be defined when they
first appear.
DEFINED WHEN
01 THEY FIRST APPEAR
WRITTEN IN
02 SPECIFIC
OPERATIONAL OR
Characteristics APPLIED LEVEL
of effective
definition of GROUNDED IN
terms
03 RESEARCH LITERATURE
MUST ALIGN/SUPPLEMENT
04 RESEARCH GOAL
Qualitative VS Quantitative VS Mixed
Qualitative: Definition of terms appear gradually throughout
the paper and not in a specific section. This is due the inductive
nature of the model
Quantitative: Extensive and precise definitions are placed early
in the paper so that readers understand the terms in the context
of the study.
Olivia Wilso
Mixed: Adjusted based on the type of mixed method applied
(Sequential, Parallel, etc.).
CPE 421
METHODS OF RESEARCH
Quantitative
Literature Review
Parts of a Quantitative
RRL
1. Introduction:
Problem 1 This states the organization of the
section.
2. Topic 1: This addresses scholarly literature about
the independent variable/s in the study.
3. Topic 2: This addresses the dependent
variable/s of the study.
4. Topic 3: Scholarly literature that relates both
independent and dependent variable/s. (Studies
that are closest to current study).
5. Summary: Highlights the most important
studies, captures major themes, suggests why
more research is needed on the topic, and
advances how the proposed study will fill this
need.
CPE 421
METHODS OF RESEARCH
Summary
Summary
1. Identify the topic.
2. Clarify the role of literature and
adjust based on design.
3. Identify key words and search terms.
4. Gather literature from
refereed/trusted source.
5. Organize using literature map.
6. Summarize each study.
7. Define key terms.
8. Structure the review.