Guidelines

Writing a literature review

1. Select only material that is relevant to the topic, industry, methodology and so on
2. Identify themes and group the material
3. Define key terms and draw out the important features
4. Compare results and methods of previous studies
5. Be critical and demonstrate relevance to your research
6. Set the context for your study (a deductive approach suggests you will identify a theoretical framework and hypotheses)
7. Identify gaps or deficiencies in the literature that your study will address
8. Conclude with your research question(s)
9. Acknowledge other people’s contribution to knowledge using the Harvard system of referencing.

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