A literature review should be structured like any other essay: it should have an introduction, a middle or main body, and a conclusion/summary.
Introduction
The introduction should:
- define your topic and provide an appropriate context for reviewing the literature;
- establish your reasons – i.e. point of view – for
- reviewing the literature;
- explain the organization – i.e. sequence – of the review;
- state the scope of the review – i.e. what is included and what isn’t included. For example, if you were reviewing the literature on obesity in children you might say something like: There are a large number of studies of obesity trends in the general population. However, since the focus of this research is on obesity in children, these will not be reviewed in detail and will only be referred to as appropriate.
Subsections based on a deductive approach
This areas should:
- organize the literature according to common themes (subsections);
- provide insight into the relationship between your research topic and the wider subject area (example: how blockchain it to global financial security)
- move from a general, wider view of the literature being reviewed to the specific focus of your research. Think of it has a funnel start at the top of the funnel then get specific. If your topic was first denied because you were told to be more specific or that it was to generic and you honed in to specify your topic, then your initial topic is likely part of the top of your funnel or wider view.
Summary
The summary should:
- summarize the important aspects of the existing body of literature;
- evaluate the current state of the literature reviewed;
- identify significant flaws or gaps in existing knowledge;
- outline areas for future study;
- link your research to existing knowledge.