Completing a dissertation writing can be a momentous accomplishment in a student’s academic journey (BAW, 2022); a component that is fundamental to the process is the literature review. This is the core part of the research and offers background information on your topic, corresponding theory, and information on prior research in the field. When writing a 12,000-word literature review length dissertation, it is critical to be very specific in the areas you are covering, while at the same time being brief.
Here in this blog, let us show you how to know the length of the literature review that will suit your project the best and give you some tips. Still, if you feel that you need more help, you can type “dissertation help.”
Purpose of Literature Review
Although a literature review is not a method in the traditional sense, its purpose is to briefly present methods used in prior research, and discuss similarities and differences in the context of the present study with an optimal length for literature.
The purpose of carrying out a literature review is to establish what has been written concerning a given area of research. You format this knowledge in a written report. In this way, you are creating your background in your specific field via the method of critiquing earlier works.
As the writer of a literature review you will demonstrate what has been researched in your chosen topic up to date and areas which have possibilities for further research. Thus, the inclusion of the literature review helps one to show why the research undertaken is relevant, necessary, and sound. After knowing how many words should a literature review be let’s begin to continue with the steps to write it.
Ways to start and finish a literature review
Step 1 – Literature Search
Therefore, involves reviewing of literature in the identified areas. The first stage that any writer goes through as they begin to write a literature review is actually searching for the literature. When doing so it is best practice to consider the sort of literature that is advancing the research in the area of study in question and the materials that are most current.
- Examples of literature sources include:
- Peer reviewed journals
- Reports
- Academic books
- Government documents
Step 2 – Evaluate your sources
The process that comes after acquiring your sources is that of making an evaluation on the information you have acquired (Alicahelen, 2024). First of all, you must dissect the credibility of your sources, and what they bring to your field of study. Although the information offered by any source may be qualitative in nature, once you have decided a source is trustworthy you have been given a privileged view to examine the content in a much closer manner.
Some questions to consider when evaluating sources are:
- Is the source being used reliable and academic?
- Is this source of any value for the content domain under investigation?
- What have been defined as the key terms and concepts?
- Does it contain any aversions that require further research papers to be written?
Step 3 – define themes
The third step in a literature review is to define themes, argumentation, and voids, with the postmodernist perspective being a prominent theme in educational leadership. This assignment requires a critical analysis of topics, issues, and areas of expansion. Collecting sources and summarizing them helps connect common ideas and themes, identifying major themes and outline’s structure.
Step 4 – It is also important to draw the structure of a narrative
The overall composition of your literature review matters. Thus, ideally, you should submit an organized material in which your themes and debates are clearly outlined so that you can effectively present your sides and opinions. When deciding on the structure it is important to consider the following questions:
- Which important knowledge or message, as a reader, do you want him or her to be left with after going through your literature review?
- Considering the above points, how can you arrange your sources briefly?
Step 5 – Write your literature review
Well, now that you know the general concept of what a literature review is, it is now time to start writing the paper. A literature review format is split into three sections: This is in regard to an introduction, a body and a conclusion which cannot be complete and total without a clean and neat list of references cited correctly at the end.
Components of a literature review
Writing the introduction
Introduction and background to the literature review specify the selected topic, explain its relevance, place in the subject field, the objectives, goals, and the range of the investigation. It also outlines the nature of the review, precisely, the review is delimitated to certain features of the topic.
Writing the main body
Literature review deals with sources and therefore the gaps of research. They are arranged in chronological order and themes to create a view of sources’ evolution throughout the time. It is imperative to note that in every source, one should provide a description, summary and an evaluation besides identifying the gaps in the literature.
Writing the conclusion
Thus, while restating main points in the literature review conclusion, it is vital to emphasize the goal of the review. Suggest topics for further research and point out the limitations. Do not generate new concepts discussing them, it is essential to repeat the points made in the prior speaking and writing parts. Do not introduce new concepts or new information in the abstract.
Writing the references
Most often, literature review includes a list of references or bibliography at the end of the work if it is a separate paper. This list will also incorporate all the sources that were used and the formatting of the list will be in accordance to the university/organisation’s standards.
It provides the reader with a mechanism of assessing the credibility of the sources used and safeguard your work against the lawsuit of plagiarism.
Conclusion
To establish the length of your literature review in a 12,000-word dissertation, there are certain aspects that you should consider including the scope of your study, your research objectives and the intensity of your analysis. Maintaining the reasonable level of detail and being concise is one of the main objectives of the literature review.
Do not forget to specify your criteria for inclusion and exclusion of articles, divide the articles by themes, critically analyze the sources, and keep track of the hot topics of the field. If you want, however, you can get dissertation help so that the subsequent parts of your work are built on a solid ground that is your literature review.
References
Alicahelen (2024). How long should a literature review be in a 12,000-Word dissertation? – HackMD. (n.d.). HackMD. https://hackmd.io/@alicahelen/rypw4fFGT
BAW (2022). How Academic Help Providers Save the Students’ Future? https://bestassignmentwriter.co.uk/blog/how-academic-help-providers-save-the-students-future/