Knowing when to stop can be one of the main contemplations while composing a literature review, which can in some cases want to navigate a ceaseless ocean of scholarly review. A literature review is a fundamental part of your dissertation that gives foundation to your work, sums up past exploration, and distinguishes gaps.
However, determining the ideal length and point at which emphasis and thoroughness are balanced is a challenge for a lot of students. We’ll show you how to avoid “research fatigue” and analyze when to stop composing your literature review in this article. In addition, we’ll go over often-asked topics like How long should a literature review be? and offer accommodating exhortation on when to complete the literature review.
A Literature Review: What Is It?
We should portray a literature review rapidly before getting into the complexities. A literature review inspects scholastic books, diaries, and different materials that are relevant to a particular field of study. It gives the hypothetical system to your paper by summing up, combining, and studying prior research. This part fills in as something other than a summation; a basic evaluation features the expansiveness of past work and demonstrates how your examination fits inside it.
A literature review is a necessary piece of assessment papers and compositions in the UK. A brief writing survey ensures that you have a firm comprehension of the subject and are not rehashing recently distributed work, especially spending significant time in the humanities, sociologies, or STEM.
Do You Know How Long Should a Literature Review Be?
Students frequently ask, “How long should a literature review be?” The response contrasts given your insightful standing, subject of study, and departmental or university essentials.
- Undergrad Level: 1,500-3,000 words is the commonplace length for a literature review for an undergrad paper.
- Expert’s Level: The literature review is normally longer right now, going from three to 6,000 words.
- PhD Level: As indicated by the broadness and intricacy of the exploration, the literature review for a doctoral paper might be up to 10,000 words or longer.
Even though these are approximations, it’s essential to understand that the quality and importance of the sources you use, in addition to a word count, ought to direct how long your literature review is.
Important Things to Consider Before Concluding Your Literature Review
Analyzing your previous work critically is necessary to choose when to stop. When you’re ready to finish your literature review, consider the following inquiries:
- Have You Addressed All of the Major Theories and Themes?
All of the key ideas and concepts associated with your study topic should be included in your literature review. This entails going through and analyzing a wide range of research. If your coverage has large gaps, it might be too soon to quit.
- Are You Repeating the Same Things?
It’s always a good idea to stop when anything repeats. You’ve probably exhausted your options if you keep coming back to the same books, philosophies, or concepts without gaining any new knowledge.
- Have You Spotted Any Bibliographic Gaps?
Finding gaps in the exploration is one of the primary objectives of a literature review. Your review is almost done if you have already shown where the existing studies are lacking and how your work will fill in these gaps.
- Does the Review Help You Come Up with a Research Question?
Your research topic or hypothesis should make sense when reading through a well-organized literature evaluation. You should be prepared to stop if you have developed your research topic to the level where it can be clearly stated in light of the body of current literature.
How to Evaluate Your Literature Review’s Scope
- Create distinct boundaries: Concentrate on the information that is most pertinent to your study. Keep your literature review brief and targeted by avoiding studies that aren’t related.
- Create a time window: Restrict the scope of your review by selecting a time frame (e.g., the last 10–20 years). This keeps your review from being overburdened with dated references.
- Put quality above quantity: Rather than adding extra sources, give priority to high-quality, peer-reviewed studies. Quality guarantees a thorough yet targeted literature review devoid of superfluous information.
Some Advice for Concluding Your Literature Review
Writing your literature review’s conclusion is just as crucial as the rest of it. The main conclusions should be outlined in your conclusion, along with how they relate to your particular study. Here are a few helpful methods to consider if you’re not sure how to end:
- List The Main Themes In Brief
The main themes and patterns that surfaced throughout your investigation should be summed up in the conclusion of the literature. A succinct synopsis of the key study areas pertinent to your dissertation suffices instead of repeating every detail.
- Connecting the Dot to Your Research Question
Your research topic and the literature study will be connected by a compelling conclusion. Indicate in detail how the review leads to your chosen area of study and how your work will fill in the gaps in the literature.
- Remain Succinct and Targeted
Your literature review doesn’t have to end with a long paragraph. Write succinctly and directly, emphasizing the most important takeaways. This is the point where you should tie everything together, but don’t add any new details just yet.
When to Take Into Account Expert Writing Services for Your Dissertation
It may be time to get expert assistance if you’re still unclear on where to end or how to organize your literature study. For advice, many UK students look to dissertation writing services, especially if they are having trouble determining whether their review is finished.
Services for writing dissertations can be offered:
- Advice for locating important studies
- Assistance with organizing and wrapping up your literature review Assistance with synthesizing and summarising the literature
- Comments on whether the scope of your review is appropriate
You may make sure your literature review is thorough, well-rounded, and ready for submission by consulting with an expert.
Conclusion
It can be difficult to write a literature review, but recognizing when to give up is essential to finishing your dissertation on time. Make sure you’ve addressed all the important topics, avoided repetition, found any gaps, and connected your review to your research question before deciding when to end. Prioritise quality, establish boundaries, and don’t hesitate to ask for expert assistance if you need it.
References
Randolph, J., 2019. A guide to writing the dissertation literature review. Practical assessment, research, and evaluation, 14(1), p.13.TDH.2019.PhD Proposal Writing Guide for Non-Native English Speakers.Online Available at:<https://thedissertationhelp.co.uk/phd-proposal-writing-guide-for-non-native-english-speakers/> (Accessed: 20 September 2024)
