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Literature Reviews: An Overview for Graduate Students (video, 9:38) by
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A literature review is a comprehensive assessment and documentation of the literature related to your area of research or your problem.
Literature, in this context, refers to the high quality professional and scholarly information sources relevant to your research area. Generally, the literature includes scholarly information such as:
- Books
- Journal articles
- Research papers
- Conference papers
Depending on your research area, it could also include professional information such as
- Standards
- Policy documents
- Legislation and regulations.
A literature review does not incorporate your original research. On the contrary it analyses and synthesises others research to create a complete picture of the current state of your topic of interest. It is often used to demonstrate a gap in the research.