Literature review - Dr. Faisal Al-Allaf

Literature Review
Dr. Faisal Al-Allaf
Assistant Professor of Genetics and Molecular Medicine
fallaf@uqu.edu.sa
Tel/Fax: 5270000 Ext: 4197/4198

١٤٣٤/٠٩/٨ Dr. Faisal Al-Allaf, fallaf@uqu.edu.sa 2
Dealing with writing blocks
 No time
 Personal problems or illness
 You do not know what to do
 You do not know where to begin

Getting Ready to Write
 Pre-write
 Write inside out
 Follow the guidelines of the funding agencies
 Work from an outline
 Find a model proposal
 Find a mentor
 Establish a timetable and meet periodically
 Review, pretest, and revise repeatedly

Elements of a Proposal
 Title
 Abstract or summary
 Introduction
 Problem or needs statement
 Project goals and objectives
 Literature review
 Project method or design
 Project evaluation
 Project management
 Organizational capabilities
 Project budget
 Resumes of Applicants

What is a Literature Review?
Background
 Literature review is a section which sets the proposed
study in context and gives its rationale
 It is a classification and evaluation of what other
researchers have written on a topic, organized
chronologically or according to the research objectives
 This section cites previous research that is relevant and
indicates the problems with prior research and what
uncertainties remain

Literature Review: Background and
Significance
Significance
 Specify how the findings of the proposed study will help resolve
uncertainties
 Potential discovery and/or new scientific knowledge
 How the finding will influence practice guidelines or public health policy.
 Will the results of the research fill a defined gap in our knowledge or
advance our understanding of this subject?
 Will the research facilitate the development of valuable techniques or
experimental models, lead to rational treatment for some pathological
condition, or change existing practices?
 Is this research likely to yield new conclusions that will have general
theoretical value or practical clinical significance, or impact on the delivery
or organization of practices or health services?

Why do a Literature Review?
 To place the study in a historical perspective
 To define and limit the problem
 To explain how the question to be investigated fits into the larger picture
 To asks why to approached the topic this way
 To allows the readers to be brought up to date regarding the state of
research in the field and familiarizes them to any contrasting perspectives
and viewpoints on the topic.
 Does my professional background, research experience, past progress in
the topic, knowledge in the field and preliminary experiments, as outlined in
this application demonstrate that I am qualified to perform the study
 Do I have the technical competence and skills needed for the proposed
work, and that my results will be reliable and inspire confidence in my
peers?

Components of Literature Review:
Searching, Assessing, and Integrating
 Literature review is
 A critical reading (searching)
 Analyses (assessing)
 Summarizing (integrating)
of peer reviewed articles about a specific topic to determine the
following:
 What is known about the topic?
 How it is correlated with the research question?
 What kind of answers will the study provide?
 It is not a list of all the books and papers that you have read

Literature search (searching)
 What is known about the subject?
 Find materials relevant to the subject and avoid irrelevant references
 Make sure that you have collected thoroughly
 Your favorite search engine may not find most of the relevant literature!
 Place the study in a historical perspective and avoid unnecessary
duplication
 Not all relevant materials are published - show familiarity with unpublished
work, gained through personal contacts
 Identify the next logical stage of research beyond your current application
 Not all appropriate sources of information will be relevant all of the time

Literature search (searching)
 Provide preliminary data, this extremely important section helps build
reviewers confidence that you can handle the technologies, understand
the methods, and interpret results.
 Preliminary data should support the hypothesis to be tested and the
feasibility of the project.
 Explain how the preliminary results are valid and how early studies will be
expanded in scope or size.
 Preliminary data may consist of your own publications, publications of
others, unpublished data from your own laboratory or from others, or some
combination of these.
 Include manuscripts submitted for publication. Make sure it is clear which
data are yours and which were reported by others.

Data evaluation (assessing):
 Is there consensus about the topic?
 What sources of information or data were identified that might be
useful to you?
 Are there any gaps in the knowledge of the subject?
 Have areas of further study been identified by other researchers
that you may want to consider?
 What aspects have generated significant debate on the topic?
 What is the most productive methodology for your research based
on the literature you have reviewed?

Data evaluation (assessing):
 Review critically and organize logically the data and events that led to the
present proposal
 Determine which literature makes a significant contribution to the
understanding of the topic.
 Determine if the findings and conclusions should be relied upon and are
not misleading (Evaluate research methods).
 Ask, does this background information justify the next step, which is this
proposal?
 Ask, have I made a clear distinction between (a) what others/or
collaborators have done, (b) what I have done, (c) what I intend to do?
 Ask, have I demonstrated a thorough understanding and a balanced
knowledge of the pertinent literature, and have I emphasized or clarified
discrepancies?

Data interpretation (integrating)
 Literature review may exhibit apparent contradictions
 Discuss the findings and conclusions of relevant literature
 Determine the advantages and disadvantages of previously used
methodologies
 Identify ways to improve conceptual frameworks for research
 Identify promising future research
 Ask, have the preliminary studies demonstrated that the methods,
procedures, techniques, and protocols are feasible, adequate and
appropriate, and that the hypothesis is therefore readily testable?
 What methods or problems were identified by others studying in the
field and how might they impact your research?
 What is the current status of research in this area?

Effective Literature Review
 Compare and contrast different researchers' views on an issue
 Group research that draw similar conclusions
 Criticize aspects of methodology
 Note areas in which authors are in disagreement
 Highlight perfect studies
 Highlight gaps in research
 Show how your study relates to previous studies
 Show how your study relates to the literature in general
 Conclude by summarizing what the literature says
Caulley, 1992

Plagiarism
 The deliberate or reckless representation/Publication of
another author's language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions,
and the representation of them as one's own original work
 To avoid plagiarism, you must give credit whenever you
use another person’s
 idea, opinion, or theory
 any facts, statistics, graphs, drawings
 any pieces of information—that are not common knowledge;
 quotations of another person’s actual spoken or written words
 paraphrase of another person’s spoken or written words.
 How to paraphrase & avoid plagiarism?
http://www.indiana.edu/~wts/pamphlets/plagiarism.shtml
http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/plagiarism.html

References
 It is advisable to use software to cite and organize your
references
 Endnotes
 Reference manager

Characteristics of a Good
Literature Review
 Clarity of the presentation
 Clear outline
 Meaningful subheadings
 Point by point summaries
 Concise tables
 Simple diagram
 Potential flaws

١٤٣٤/٠٩/٨ Dr. Faisal Al-Allaf, fallaf@uqu.edu.sa 18١٤٣٤/٠٩/٨ 18
THANK YOU

Literature review - Dr. Faisal Al-Allaf

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