CNCSP 102 Literature Review

LiteratureReviewGradingRubric1 xCNCSP102_Litreviewexample_2015 LiteratureReviewHow-to
  

CNCSP 102

Literature Review

The goal of this assignment is for students to explore a topic of interest related to the field of Applied Psychology by reviewing a body of topical studies, literature reviews, or book chapters, etc. These published works can be secured from various sources or databases (PsycInfo, Google Scholar, etc.); however, they must be focused on a topic relevant to the practice of Psychology/ Education. After reviewing the published works, students will write a 3- to 4-page paper (not including title page or reference page) summarizing the findings of these works, identifying 2-3 strengths and 2-3 weaknesses for each source reviewed. Additionally, taking into account all of the sources reviewed, 2-3 possible directions for your research proposal (e.g., where additional research is needed) as well as 2-3 research questions are to be included. The paper should also adhere to APA formatting guidelines (6th Edition). This assignment is worth 20% of your grade and is due via GauchoSpace by 11:59pm on Monday, August 29th. 

The paper will be graded (15 points total) using the following rubric:

  

Area

Scoring

Points

 

Relevance to applied psychology

0 = topic is not   relevant to applied psychology; relevance of topic and selected articles to   applied psychology/education is not articulated

/1
 

1 = topic is relevant   to applied psychology; relevance of topic and selected articles to applied   psychology/education is clearly articulated

 
Literature Review

**Sources should be recent (since 2000) and taken from a variety of journals**

For each reviewed   source: (at least 4 ; 4 x 2 = 8 points)

1 = source is   summarized and 1-2 strengths or weakness are identified, but need   clarification

/8
 

Summary and review of   strengths and weaknesses

 

2 = source is   summarized and at least 2 strengths and 2 weaknesses clearly identified and   articulated

 

Future directions for   research proposal

0 = no possible   directions for your research proposal based on your reviewed sources are included

/2
 

1 = 1 possible   direction for your research proposal based on the weaknesses, limitations, or   gaps in the literature you identified are included in your summary

 

2 = 2-3 possible   directions for your research proposal are identified, clearly articulated,   and connected to the weakness/limitations identified in your summary

 

Research Questions

0 = no research   question(s) included

/2
 

1 = 1 research   question(s) included and connected to topic, but need clarification

 

2 = 2-3 research   question(s) included, connected to topic, and clearly articulated

 

APA formatting adhered to.

0 = 5+ APA 6th   edition formatting errors

/1
 

1 = fewer than 5 APA 6th   edition formatting errors

 

Grammar, spelling, and   punctuation

0 = 5+ grammar,   spelling, or punctuation errors

/1
 

1 = fewer than 5 grammar,   spelling, or punctuation errors

 

TOTAL POINTS

/15

CNCSP 102 Literature Review

The goal of this assignment is for students to explore a topic of interest related to the field of Applied Psychology by reviewing a body of topical studies, literature reviews, or book chapters, etc. These published works can be secured from various sources or databases (PsycInfo, Google Scholar, etc.); however,
they must be focused on a topic relevant to the practice of Psychology/ Education. After reviewing the published works, students will write a 3- to 4-page paper (not including title page or reference page) summarizing the findings of these works, identifying 2-3 strengths and 2-3 weaknesses for each source reviewed. Additionally, taking into account all of the sources reviewed, 2-3 possible directions for your research proposal (e.g., where additional research is needed) as well as 2-3 research questions are to be included. The paper should also adhere to APA formatting guidelines (6th Edition). This assignment is worth 20% of your grade and is due via GauchoSpace by 11:59pm on Monday, August 29th.

The paper will be graded (15 points total) using the following rubric:

/1

Area

Scoring

Points

Relevance to applied psychology

0 = topic is not relevant to applied psychology; relevance of topic and selected articles to applied psychology/education is not articulated

/ 1

1 = topic is relevant to applied psychology; relevance of topic and selected articles to applied psychology/education is clearly articulated

Literature Review **Sources should be recent (since 2000) and taken from a variety of journals**

For each reviewed source: (at least 4 ; 4 x 2 = 8 points) 1 = source is summarized and 1-2 strengths or weakness are identified, but need clarification

/ 8

Summary and review of strengths and weaknesses

2 = source is summarized and at least 2 strengths and 2 weaknesses clearly identified and articulated

Future directions for research proposal

0 = no possible directions for your research proposal based on your reviewed sources are included

/ 2

1 = 1 possible direction for your research proposal based on the weaknesses, limitations, or gaps in the literature you identified are included in your summary

2 = 2-3 possible directions for your research proposal are identified, clearly articulated, and connected to the weakness/limitations identified in your summary

Research Questions

0 = no research question(s) included

/ 2

1 = 1 research question(s) included and connected to topic, but need clarification

2 = 2-3 research question(s) included, connected to topic, and clearly articulated

APA formatting adhered to.

0 = 5+ APA 6th edition formatting errors

/1

1 = fewer than 5 APA 6th edition formatting errors

Grammar, spelling, and punctuation

0 = 5+ grammar, spelling, or punctuation errors

1 = fewer than 5 grammar, spelling, or punctuation errors

TOTAL POINTS

/15

Running head: SCHOOL-BASED MENTAL HEALTH 1

School-Based Mental Health

Erin Dowdy, Matthew Quirk, and Jenna Chin

University of California, Santa Barbara

[NOTE. No Abstract needed for this assignment]

SCHOOL-BASED MENTAL HEALTH 2
 

 

 

School-Based Mental Health

School-based mental health generally refers to the delivery of any type of mental health

services within a school setting. However, the term is in need of a clearer conceptual framework

due to the variety of school settings in which it is applied including charter schools, public

schools, and school programs in hospitals or juvenile justice settings (Kutash, Duchnowski, &

Lynn, 2006). More fundamentally, the term mental health is plagued with ambiguity. Although

mental “health” is a positive concept, it is often used in reference to mental illness and

encompasses services provided to those with diagnosable mental disorders or other serious

psychopathology. Emerging research on “dual-factor” (Suldo & Shaffer, 2008) or “two-factor”

(Keyes, 2009) models of mental health suggest that mental illness and mental wellness are not on

a single continuum, but rather are separate, complementary constructs (Keyes, 2005). Thus, an

individual’s “mental health” may be best understood when both competencies as well as deficits

are considered (Furlong, Sharkey, Boman, & Caldwell, 2007) and school-based mental health

services should encompass both wellness-enhancing and symptom-reduction goals.

Despite the lack of definitional clarity, there is a clear need for the establishment of

school-based mental health services as schools often become the de-facto mental health care

system for many children and adolescents (Hoagwood & Johnson, 2003). This is, in part, due to

the fact that a substantial number of children do not receive primary health care services

elsewhere, particularly children from impoverished backgrounds who are at elevated risk for

poor behavioral outcomes (Kelleher, Moore, Childs, Angelilli, & Comer, 1999).

Research conducted over the past decade has provided evidence supporting the efficacy

of multiple school-based mental health service delivery frameworks, including population-based

models (Doll & Cummings, 2008), three-tiered models (Nastasi & Varjas, 2008), policy vision

SCHOOL-BASED MENTAL HEALTH 3
 

 

 
frameworks (Adelman & Taylor, 2003), and community schools (Blank, Quinn, & Kim, 2003).

This research, along with recent legislation and changes to educational policies (e.g., The

President’s New Freedom Commission on Mental Health, 2003; Individuals with Disabilities

Education Act, 2004), has resulted in an increased focus on addressing children’s mental health

needs in schools.

School-Based Mental Health and Academics

The increased attention on school-based mental health has also been driven, at least in

part, by research clearly showing relations between children’s social and emotional well-being

and academic achievement (Hinshaw, 1992; Jimerson, Egeland, & Teo, 1999). Students with

emotional and behavioral disorders experience low overall academic achievement, as measured

by achievement test scores (Bradley, Doolittle, & Bartolotta, 2008; Reid et al., 2004). The

academic differences between students functioning well (in terms of their behavioral and

emotional health) and those that are not functioning well are quite drastic. Specifically, estimates

suggest that 75% of students with significant emotional and behavioral problems in the U.S. are

achieving below expected grade levels in reading and 97% are below expected grade levels in

math (Bradley et al.).

While behavioral and emotional problems are significant barriers to academic

achievement, positive behavioral and emotional health is associated with academic success

(Atkins, Frazier, Adil, & Talbott, 2003; Catalano, Haggerty, Osterle, Fleming, & Hawkins,

2004). Yet these relations should not be interpreted in isolation. Meta-analyses show that

learning is influenced by a variety of both proximal (e.g., psychological, instructional, and home

environments) and distal (e.g. economic, organizational, and policy) factors (Wang, Haertel, &

Walberg, 1993) and that academic success can be attributed to the constellation and interplay of

SCHOOL-BASED MENTAL HEALTH 4
 

 

 
multiple variables. Studies have suggested some specific moderating variables that further

explain the relation between behavioral and emotional problems and academic achievement. For

example, students who have stronger relationships with their teachers (Hughes, Luo, Kwok &

Loyd, 2008) and/or have teachers who utilize strong classroom management and reinforcement

techniques (Sutherland, Lewis-Palmer, Stichter & Morgan, 2008) experience more favorable

academic outcomes. These variables, amongst others, should be considered in the

conceptualization of emotional and behavioral problems, as well as in the formulation of

interventions.

Although it is difficult to determine if behavioral problems lead to underachievement or

vice versa (Bradley et al., 2008), the relation can be explained, in part, by examining the reduced

exposure to instruction that often co-occurs with emotional and behavioral difficulties. Students

with emotional and behavioral problems exhibit behaviors which often lead to less instructional

exposure. For example, students with emotional and behavioral problems experience higher

rates of suspensions, expulsions (Wagner et al., 2005), and absenteeism (Lane, Carter, Pierson, &

Glaeser, 2006). Additionally, students with emotional and behavioral problems drop out of

school at alarmingly higher rates than the general population. For example, U. S. national

longitudinal studies show that more than half of students identified as having significant

emotional or behavioral problems leave the educational system by dropping out (United States

Public Health Service, 2000) and of those that do remain in school, only 42% graduate with a

diploma (Bradley, Doolittle, & Bartolotta, 2008).

Although there is growing support for the provision of school-based mental health

services, there remain some criticisms. Critics often express concerns that schools are not the

appropriate place for mental health services, claiming that they fall outside of the scope of the

SCHOOL-BASED MENTAL HEALTH 5
 

 

 
educational system (Adelman & Taylor, 2003). These concerns stem from fears that academic

instructional time may be compromised by time spent dealing with mental health issues and that

the mental health of students should not be a primary concern of educators. However, if services

are not provided within the schools many students will not receive mental health treatment,

leading to significant emotional and financial costs for children, families, schools, and society

(Insel, 2008; Dickstein, 2009).

Summary and Remaining Questions

Schools, teachers, parents, and researchers acknowledging the importance of mental

health services are advised to: provide a comprehensive array of services (i.e. not only services

for mental illness), provide individualized services to reduce the child’s barriers to learning,

promote early identification and early intervention services, provide services within the least

restrictive environment, involve families in the planning and delivery of services, and integrate

all services provided through various agencies both within the school and community (Leaf et

al., 2003). In summary, a variety of research supports that school-based mental health services

positively affect academic outcomes (e.g., Zins, Weissberg, Wang, & Walberg, 2004); however,

additional research is still needed to better understand the dynamics of the relations between

services, student mental health, and academic success.

1. What types of mental health services are associated with improved student mental

health?

2. What is the directionality of the relation between mental health and academic

outcomes?

SCHOOL-BASED MENTAL HEALTH 6
 

 

 

References

Adelman, H.S. & Taylor, L. (2003). Toward a comprehensive policy vision for mental health in

schools. In M. D. Weist, S. W. Evans & N. A. Lever (Eds.), Handbook of school mental

health: Advancing practice and research. New York, NY: Kluwer Academic/Plenum

Publishers (pp. 23-43).

Benjet, C., Borges, G., Medina-Mora, M. E., Zambrano, J., & Aguilar-Gaxiola, S. (2009). Youth

mental health in a populous city of the developing world: results from the Mexican

Adolescent Mental Health Survey. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 50(4),

386-395. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-7610.2008.01962

Blank, M. J., Quinn, J. & Kim, H. (2003). The community schools approach: improving student

learning, strengthening families and communities. In M. D. Weist, S. W. Evans & N. A.

Lever (Eds.), Handbook of school mental health: Advancing practice and research. New

York, NY: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers (pp. 119-133).

Doll, B. & Cummings, J. A. (2008). Best practices in population-based school mental health

services. In A. Thomas & J. Grimes (Eds.), Best Practices in School Psychology V (pp.

1333-1347). Bethesda, MD: National Association of School Psychologists.

Hughes, J. N., Luo, W., Kwok, O. & Loyd, L. K. (2008). Teacher-student support, effortful

engagement, and achievement: a 3-year longitudinal study. Journal of Educational

Psychology, 100(1), 1-14. doi: 10.1037/0022-0663.100.1.1

Jimerson, S., Egeland, B., & Teo, A. (1999). A longitudinal study of achievement trajectories:

Factors associated with change. Journal of Educational Psychology, 91(1), 116-126.

doi:10.1037/0022-0663.91.1.116

[NOTE. Just a subset of example references; papers should list all works reviewed]

The Writing Center

Literature Reviews

What this handout is about

This handout will explain what a literature review is and offer insights into the form and
construction of a literature review in the humanities, social sciences, and sciences.

Introduction

OK. You’ve got to write a literature review. You dust off a novel and a book of poetry, settle
down in your chair, and get ready to issue a “thumbs up” or “thumbs down” as you leaf through
the pages. “Literature review” done. Right?

Wrong! The “literature” of a literature review refers to any collection of materials on a topic, not
necessarily the great literary texts of the world. “Literature” could be anything from a set of
government pamphlets on British colonial methods in Africa to scholarly articles on the
treatment of a torn ACL. And a review does not necessarily mean that your reader wants you to
give your personal opinion on whether or not you liked these sources.

What is a literature review, then?

A literature review discusses published information in a particular subject area, and sometimes
information in a particular subject area within a certain time period.

A literature review can be just a simple summary of the sources, but it usually has an
organizational pattern and combines both summary and synthesis. A summary is a recap of the
important information of the source, but a synthesis is a re-organization, or a reshuffling, of
that information. It might give a new interpretation of old material or combine new with old
interpretations. Or it might trace the intellectual progression of the field, including major
debates. And depending on the situation, the literature review may evaluate the sources and
advise the reader on the most pertinent or relevant.

But how is a literature review different from an academic research paper?

The main focus of an academic research paper is to develop a new argument, and a research
paper will contain a literature review as one of its parts. In a research paper, you use the
literature as a foundation and as support for a new insight that you contribute. The focus of a
literature review, however, is to summarize and synthesize the arguments and ideas of others
without adding new contributions.

Like 66 people like this.

Home

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Why do we write literature reviews?

Literature reviews provide you with a handy guide to a particular topic. If you have limited time
to conduct research, literature reviews can give you an overview or act as a stepping stone. For
professionals, they are useful reports that keep them up to date with what is current in the
field. For scholars, the depth and breadth of the literature review emphasizes the credibility of
the writer in his or her field. Literature reviews also provide a solid background for a research
paper’s investigation. Comprehensive knowledge of the literature of the field is essential to
most research papers.

Who writes these things, anyway?

Literature reviews are written occasionally in the humanities, but mostly in the sciences and
social sciences; in experiment and lab reports, they constitute a section of the paper.
Sometimes a literature review is written as a paper in itself.

Let’s get to it! What should I do before writing the literature review?

Clarify

If your assignment is not very specific, seek clarification from your instructor:

Roughly how many sources should you include?
What types of sources (books, journal articles, websites)?
Should you summarize, synthesize, or critique your sources by discussing a common theme
or issue?
Should you evaluate your sources?
Should you provide subheadings and other background information, such as definitions
and/or a history?

Find models

Look for other literature reviews in your area of interest or in the discipline and read them to
get a sense of the types of themes you might want to look for in your own research or ways to
organize your final review. You can simply put the word “review” in your search engine along
with your other topic terms to find articles of this type on the Internet or in an electronic
database. The bibliography or reference section of sources you’ve already read are also
excellent entry points into your own research.

Narrow your topic

There are hundreds or even thousands of articles and books on most areas of study. The
narrower your topic, the easier it will be to limit the number of sources you need to read in
order to get a good survey of the material. Your instructor will probably not expect you to read
everything that’s out there on the topic, but you’ll make your job easier if you first limit your
scope.

And don’t forget to tap into your professor’s (or other professors’) knowledge in the field. Ask
your professor questions such as: “If you had to read only one book from the 70′s on topic X,
what would it be?” Questions such as this help you to find and determine quickly the most
seminal pieces in the field.

Consider whether your sources are current

Some disciplines require that you use information that is as current as possible. In the sciences,
for instance, treatments for medical problems are constantly changing according to the latest
studies. Information even two years old could be obsolete. However, if you are writing a review
in the humanities, history, or social sciences, a survey of the history of the literature may be
what is needed, because what is important is how perspectives have changed through the years
or within a certain time period. Try sorting through some other current bibliographies or
literature reviews in the field to get a sense of what your discipline expects. You can also use
this method to consider what is currently of interest to scholars in this field and what is not.

Strategies for writing the literature review

Find a focus

A literature review, like a term paper, is usually organized around ideas, not the sources
themselves as an annotated bibliography would be organized. This means that you will not just
simply list your sources and go into detail about each one of them, one at a time. No. As you
read widely but selectively in your topic area, consider instead what themes or issues connect
your sources together. Do they present one or different solutions? Is there an aspect of the field
that is missing? How well do they present the material and do they portray it according to an
appropriate theory? Do they reveal a trend in the field? A raging debate? Pick one of these
themes to focus the organization of your review.

Construct a working thesis statement

Then use the focus you’ve found to construct a thesis statement. Yes! Literature reviews have
thesis statements as well! However, your thesis statement will not necessarily argue for a
position or an opinion; rather it will argue for a particular perspective on the material. Some
sample thesis statements for literature reviews are as follows:

The current trend in treatment for congestive heart failure combines surgery and
medicine.

More and more cultural studies scholars are accepting popular media as a subject
worthy of academic consideration.

See our handout for more information on how to construct thesis statements.

Consider organization

http://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/thesis-statements/

You’ve got a focus, and you’ve narrowed it down to a thesis statement. Now what is the most
effective way of presenting the information? What are the most important topics, subtopics,
etc., that your review needs to include? And in what order should you present them? Develop
an organization for your review at both a global and local level:

First, cover the basic categories

Just like most academic papers, literature reviews also must contain at least three
basic elements: an introduction or background information section; the body of the
review containing the discussion of sources; and, finally, a conclusion and/or
recommendations section to end the paper.

Introduction: Gives a quick idea of the topic of the literature review, such as the central
theme or organizational pattern.

Body: Contains your discussion of sources and is organized either chronologically,
thematically, or methodologically (see below for more information on each).

Conclusions/Recommendations: Discuss what you have drawn from reviewing literature
so far. Where might the discussion proceed?

Organizing the body

Once you have the basic categories in place, then you must consider how you will
present the sources themselves within the body of your paper. Create an organizational
method to focus this section even further.

To help you come up with an overall organizational framework for your review, consider
the following scenario and then three typical ways of organizing the sources into a
review:

You’ve decided to focus your literature review on materials dealing with sperm whales.
This is because you’ve just finished reading Moby Dick, and you wonder if that whale’s
portrayal is really real. You start with some articles about the physiology of sperm
whales in biology journals written in the 1980′s. But these articles refer to some British
biological studies performed on whales in the early 18th century. So you check those
out. Then you look up a book written in 1968 with information on how sperm whales
have been portrayed in other forms of art, such as in Alaskan poetry, in French
painting, or on whale bone, as the whale hunters in the late 19th century used to do.
This makes you wonder about American whaling methods during the time portrayed in
Moby Dick, so you find some academic articles published in the last five years on how
accurately Herman Melville portrayed the whaling scene in his novel.

Chronological

If your review follows the chronological method, you could write about the materials
above according to when they were published. For instance, first you would talk about

the British biological studies of the 18th century, then about Moby Dick, published in
1851, then the book on sperm whales in other art (1968), and finally the biology
articles (1980s) and the recent articles on American whaling of the 19th century. But
there is relatively no continuity among subjects here. And notice that even though the
sources on sperm whales in other art and on American whaling are written recently,
they are about other subjects/objects that were created much earlier. Thus, the review
loses its chronological focus.

By publication

Order your sources by publication chronology, then, only if the order demonstrates
a more important trend. For instance, you could order a review of literature on
biological studies of sperm whales if the progression revealed a change in
dissection practices of the researchers who wrote and/or conducted the studies.

By trend

A better way to organize the above sources chronologically is to examine the
sources under another trend, such as the history of whaling. Then your review
would have subsections according to eras within this period. For instance, the
review might examine whaling from pre-1600-1699, 1700-1799, and 1800-1899.
Under this method, you would combine the recent studies on American whaling in
the 19th century with Moby Dick itself in the 1800-1899 category, even though the
authors wrote a century apart.

Thematic

Thematic reviews of literature are organized around a topic or issue, rather than the
progression of time. However, progression of time may still be an important factor in a
thematic review. For instance, the sperm whale review could focus on the development
of the harpoon for whale hunting. While the study focuses on one topic, harpoon
technology, it will still be organized chronologically. The only difference here between a
“chronological” and a “thematic” approach is what is emphasized the most: the
development of the harpoon or the harpoon technology.

But more authentic thematic reviews tend to break away from chronological order. For
instance, a thematic review of material on sperm whales might examine how they are
portrayed as “evil” in cultural documents. The subsections might include how they are
personified, how their proportions are exaggerated, and their behaviors misunderstood.
A review organized in this manner would shift between time periods within each section
according to the point made.

Methodological

A methodological approach differs from the two above in that the focusing factor
usually does not have to do with the content of the material. Instead, it focuses on the

“methods” of the researcher or writer. For the sperm whale project, one methodological
approach would be to look at cultural differences between the portrayal of whales in
American, British, and French art work. Or the review might focus on the economic
impact of whaling on a community. A methodological scope will influence either the
types of documents in the review or the way in which these documents are discussed.

Once you’ve decided on the organizational method for the body of the review, the
sections you need to include in the paper should be easy to figure out. They should
arise out of your organizational strategy. In other words, a chronological review would
have subsections for each vital time period. A thematic review would have subtopics
based upon factors that relate to the theme or issue.

Sometimes, though, you might need to add additional sections that are necessary for
your study, but do not fit in the organizational strategy of the body. What other
sections you include in the body is up to you. Put in only what is necessary. Here are a
few other sections you might want to consider:

Current Situation: Information necessary to understand the topic or focus of the
literature review.

History: The chronological progression of the field, the literature, or an idea that is
necessary to understand the literature review, if the body of the literature review is not
already a chronology.

Methods and/or Standards: The criteria you used to select the sources in your literature
review or the way in which you present your information. For instance, you might
explain that your review includes only peer-reviewed articles and journals.

Questions for Further Research: What questions about the field has the review
sparked? How will you further your research as a result of the review?

Begin composing

Once you’ve settled on a general pattern of organization, you’re ready to write each section.
There are a few guidelines you should follow during the writing stage as well. Here is a sample
paragraph from a literature review about sexism and language to illuminate the following
discussion:

However, other studies have shown that even gender-neutral antecedents are more
likely to produce masculine images than feminine ones (Gastil, 1990). Hamilton (1988)
asked students to complete sentences that required them to fill in pronouns that
agreed with gender-neutral antecedents such as “writer,” “pedestrian,” and “persons.”
The students were asked to describe any image they had when writing the sentence.
Hamilton found that people imagined 3.3 men to each woman in the masculine
“generic” condition and 1.5 men per woman in the unbiased condition. Thus, while

ambient sexism accounted for some of the masculine bias, sexist language amplified
the effect. (Source: Erika Falk and Jordan Mills, “Why Sexist Language Affects
Persuasion: The Role of Homophily, Intended Audience, and Offense,” Women and
Language19:2.

Use evidence

In the example above, the writers refer to several other sources when making their point. A
literature review in this sense is just like any other academic research paper. Your
interpretation of the available sources must be backed up with evidence to show that what you
are saying is valid.

Be selective

Select only the most important points in each source to highlight in the review. The type of
information you choose to mention should relate directly to the review’s focus, whether it is
thematic, methodological, or chronological.

Use quotes sparingly

Falk and Mills do not use any direct quotes. That is because the survey nature of the literature
review does not allow for in-depth discussion or detailed quotes from the text. Some short
quotes here and there are okay, though, if you want to emphasize a point, or if what the author
said just cannot be rewritten in your own words. Notice that Falk and Mills do quote certain
terms that were coined by the author, not common knowledge, or taken directly from the
study. But if you find yourself wanting to put in more quotes, check with your instructor.

Summarize and synthesize

Remember to summarize and synthesize your sources within each paragraph as well as
throughout the review. The authors here recapitulate important features of Hamilton’s study,
but then synthesize it by rephrasing the study’s significance and relating it to their own work.

Keep your own voice

While the literature review presents others’ ideas, your voice (the writer’s) should remain front
and center. Notice that Falk and Mills weave references to other sources into their own text, but
they still maintain their own voice by starting and ending the paragraph with their own ideas
and their own words. The sources support what Falk and Mills are saying.

Use caution when paraphrasing

When paraphrasing a source that is not your own, be sure to represent the author’s information
or opinions accurately and in your own words. In the preceding example, Falk and Mills either
directly refer in the text to the author of their source, such as Hamilton, or they provide ample
notation in the text when the ideas they are mentioning are not their own, for example,
Gastil’s. For more information, please see our handout on plagiarism.

http://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/plagiarism/

The Writing Center · Campus Box #5137 · SASB North Suite 0127 · UNC-CH · Chapel Hill, NC 27599 · CSSAC Home · http://cssac.unc.edu/

Revise, revise, revise

Draft in hand? Now you’re ready to revise. Spending a lot of time revising is a wise idea,
because your main objective is to present the material, not the argument. So check over your
review again to make sure it follows the assignment and/or your outline. Then, just as you
would for most other academic forms of writing, rewrite or rework the language of your review
so that you’ve presented your information in the most concise manner possible. Be sure to use
terminology familiar to your audience; get rid of unnecessary jargon or slang. Finally, double
check that you’ve documented your sources and formatted the review appropriately for your
discipline. For tips on the revising and editing process, see our handouton revising drafts.

Works consulted

We consulted these works while writing the original version of this handout. This is not a
comprehensive list of resources on the handout’s topic, and we encourage you to do your own
research to find the latest publications on this topic. Please do not use this list as a model for
the format of your own reference list, as it may not match the citation style you are using. For
guidance on formatting citations, please see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial.

Anson, Chris M. and Robert A. Schwegler, The Longman Handbook for Writers and Readers.
Second edition. New York: Longman, 2000.

Jones, Robert, Patrick Bizzaro, and Cynthia Selfe. The Harcourt Brace Guide to Writing in the
Disciplines. New York: Harcourt Brace, 1997.

Lamb, Sandra E. How to Write It: A Complete Guide to Everything You’ll Ever Write. Berkeley,
Calif.: Ten Speed Press, 1998.

Rosen, Leonard J. and Laurence Behrens. The Allyn and Bacon Handbook. Fourth edition.
Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 2000.

Troyka, Lynn Quitman. Simon and Schuster Handbook for Writers. Upper Saddle River, N.J.:
Prentice Hall, 2002.

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