The 5 C's of a Literature Review

Concise

The amount of literature available on any given topic can be vast. The attention to the conciseness of a literature review will rely precision of the research questions (location 1978 of 5314). It is at this early stage that the researcher will need to decipher where the gaps of knowledge are within the current research. Callahan (2014) describes this as a development of a research question that fulfills a lacking in current research and not necessarily the development of a new theory or phenomenon (p. 271).

Clear

The literature pertaining to a research topic will also vary. Some material will be conceptual and other material will be research based. Referring back to the research questions and asking how the literature pertains to the topic is essential. This can help the researcher to identify common themes, threads and patterns. Both Callahan (2014) and Roberts (2011) suggest the usage of a systematic method such as a matrix in organizing pertinent literature. A method such as this can support the researcher in analyzing and synthesizing.

Critical

A literature review is more than a summary of materials. Each piece of literature should be critiqued and analyzed for assumptions, beliefs, and values that essentially influence the authors thought (Callahan, 2014, p. 274). As a researcher it is at this point that one needs to be critical of the works of others and evaluate the underlying assumptions that may have guided the work of others.

Convincing

Synthesis of the literature asks the research to gather all the analysis and develop convincing argument. Again relying on the organization of the research, Roberts (2011) suggests organizing information into a “logical, coherent and well organized” topic outline. The ultimate goal is what Callahan (2014) identifies as a new interpretation of literature resulting from a critical analysis combined with supporting data.

Contributive

Inclusion of the most relevant information is essential to the literature review. In the words of Roberts (2010), “bigger is not better” in the case of the review (location 1943 of 5314). The goal of a literature review is to support research where research is needed. The review is intended to extend current knowledge, theory and be influential. The review is not a summary of previous work but a new branch created and supported by the researcher.


References

Callahan, J. L. (2014). Writing literature reviews: a reprise and update. Human Resource Development Review, 13(3), 271-275.

Roberts, C. M. (2010). The dissertation journey: A practical and comprehensive guide to planning, writing, and defending your dissertation (2nd ed.) [Kindle Version]. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press. Retrieved from Amazon.com