Conduct a review of the literature
Understand the essentials of systematic and literature reviews and how to apply them in your research.
A review is all about bringing together information from different sources to answer your research question. There are lots of ways to do a review, each with their own aims, methods and rigour. We’re here to help you find the one that fits your need.
Conducting a rigorous, transparent review helps your work have more impact, increases your chance of being published in a highly ranked journal and increases your citations.
Types of reviews
Systematic reviews follow a clear methodology in a structured process to find all available evidence on a topic. They’re typically done as part of a thesis or for publication in a peer-reviewed journal.
There are several types of systematic reviews. The most common are:
- Scoping reviews
- Systematic reviews
- Meta-analyses
Always follow methodological and reporting guidance (like JBI, Cochrane and PRISMA) when conducting a systematic review.
Traditional literature reviews are more flexible. Unlike systematic reviews, they don’t follow formal methods. And as the author, you choose which studies to include. You’ll usually complete a literature review as part of an assessment, and they’re sometimes included in a journal article.
Want to know more? Read about literature reviews.
How to do a review
Start by developing your question or aim. Write a plan (called a protocol) for how the review will be conducted.
Search the literature comprehensively to find all available evidence on your topic.
Decide if the evidence found in your search meets the inclusion criteria for your research.
Gather the information from each included study required to answer your review question. Depending on your review type, you might also do a critical appraisal of included studies.
Bring together all the results from the included studies.
Write up your review in a replicable and transparent way.
Start your review
