https://libguides.mnstate.edu/literaturereview
Librarians at MSUM are subject experts who can help with your research and course needs. There are librarians available for every discipline at MSUM who are ready to assist you with your information needs!
What we do:
“Google can bring you back 100,000 answers. A librarian can bring you back the right one.” - Neil Gaiman
The literature review is an important part of your thesis or dissertation. It is a survey of existing literature that provides context for your research contribution, and demonstrates your subject knowledge. It is also the way to tell the story of how your research extends knowledge in your field.
The first step to writing a successful literature review is knowing how to find and evaluate literature in your field. This guide is designed to introduce you to tools and give you skills you can use to effectively find the resources needed for your literature review.
This guide has been adapted from How to Conduct a Literature Review: A Guide for Graduate Students, by Iowa State University Library. https://instr.iastate.libguides.com/c.php?g=885773&p=6365131
Choosing a valid research question is something you will need to discuss with your academic advisor and/or POS committee. Ideas for your topic may come from your coursework, lab rotations, or work as a research assistant. Having a specific research topic allows you to focus your research on a project that is manageable. Beginning work on your literature review can help narrow your topic.
Depending on your area of research, the type of literature review you do for your thesis will vary. Consult with your advisor about the requirements for your discipline. You can view theses and dissertations from your field in the library's Digital Repository can give you ideas about how your literature review should be structured.
The kind of literature you use for your thesis will depend on your discipline. The Library has developed a list of Guides by Subject with discipline-specific resources. For a given subject area, look for the Subject Guide under types. You may also consult our liaison librarians for information about the literature available your research area.
Consulting multiple sources of information is the best way to insure that you have done a comprehensive search of the literature in your area. You may also consult our liaison librarians for assistance with identifying resources..
Citation management software can help you organize your references in folders and/or with tags. You can also annotate and highlight the PDFs within the software and usually the notes are searchable. To choose a good citation management software, you need to consider which one can be streamlined with your literature search and writing process. The library provides the citation management software RefWorks free for all students, faculty, and staff. Here is a guide page to learn more.
The best way to ensure academic integrity is to familiarize yourself with different types of intentional and unintentional plagiarism and learn about the University's standards for academic integrity. Start with this guide.
Writing and editing help is available at the Writing Support Center. The Writing Center offers individual consultations, peer writing tutors, workshops and seminars to help you improve your writing.
Each discipline uses its own applicable style guide. The Library has a Citation Style Guides resource you can use for guidance on specific citation styles. If you are not sure, please consult your advisor or liaison librarians for help.
Adapted from The Literature Review: For Dissertations, by the University of Michigan Library. Available: https://guides.lib.umich.edu/dissertationlitreview