Literature Review & Primary Sources

Literature Review

• Establishes a theoretical framework for a research topic.
• Defines key terms, terminology, and important definitions.
• Identifies supportive studies, models, and case studies.
• Clarifies and defines the specific area of study.

Primary and Secondary Sources

• Primary source: Original accounts of research written by investigators.
• Secondary source: Summaries or descriptions of research studies authored by others.

Grey Literature

• Refers to research that has not been commercially published.

Timing of Literature Review

• Quantitative studies require a literature review before the study to identify guiding frameworks.
• Qualitative studies utilize a literature review after conducting the study to relate findings to existing knowledge.

Abstracts and Indexes

• Abstracts consist of brief summaries of articles.
• Indexes serve as reference materials for periodicals and books.

Theory and Concepts

• A theory is a systematic set of concepts explaining phenomena.
• Theories are speculative and never considered proven.
• Propositional statements express relationships between concepts, e.g., "Drilling for oil caused dinosaurs to become extinct."
• Concepts are the building blocks of theories, encompassing ideas that can be abstract or concrete.

Constructs

• Constructs describe phenomena that cannot be directly observed, like compassion and mental health.

Empirical Generalization

• Identifies similar patterns found in data across multiple studies.

Models and Paradigms

• A model symbolically represents phenomena.
• A paradigm reflects one’s philosophical worldview affecting decisions and practices.

Metaparadigm

• Refers to core concepts and constructs defining a discipline and believed to be true by a group.

Reasoning Types

• Deductive reasoning: Moves from general to specific (used in quantitative research).
• Inductive reasoning: Moves from specific to general (used in qualitative research).

Frameworks

• A theoretical framework provides a broad explanation showing relationships based on an existing theory.
• A conceptual framework is developed when no existing theory fits and helps explain relationships based on multiple theories.

Philosophical Perspectives

• Positivism: Asserts that truth can be discovered through the scientific method, emphasizing observation and quantitative analysis.
• Postpositivism: Rejects the notion of absolute truth, acknowledging varying human perspectives and experiences of reality.

Explore the essential components of a literature review and the importance of primary sources in research. This quiz will help reinforce your understanding of how literature reviews are constructed and what qualifies as a primary source in scholarly work.