Literature review II

The student may still have some questions, for example,

How do I choose a subject for a literature review?

We might say:

It is best to find something that we find particularly interesting, since if we do not care about a subject, trying to understand all about it might be too boring.

In classes, have ajarns discussed some interesting new discoveries in any field of study? Are there controversies or disagreements among researchers that might make the basis for a lively discussion? Does any research topic seem especially important to us or relevant to our lives today?

The student may ask:

How do I know if a subject for a literature review is important enough?

Our reply:

One easy way is to see how much has already been published about it. If there is a lot of material already available on a subject, that usually means a lot of researchers want to know about it and editors of scholarly journals or at publishing houses consider it an urgent matter.

Also the more that has been written about any given subject, the likelier that we will find enough material to analyse in our literature review. If very little or almost nothing has been written about a subject, it may still be worth researching, but there will not be as much subject matter to discuss in a literature review.

Try to be specific in choosing a subject, because if it is too general, then there will be far too many publications to look at and evaluate. The more focused our topic, the more our research can usefully evaluate what has been published on it.

Never forget that a thesis and literature review are meant to be read by other researchers, not just our ajarns.

The student may wonder:

How can I write a literature review that will interest international researchers I have never met?

Our answer:

One way is to keep in mind the very specific topics we are investigating, and think what fields of study may be interested in our subject.

For example, if our thesis and literature review are on the health effects of Crispy Creme Doughnuts on Young People in the Bangkok Metropolitan Area, this topic may be of interest to researchers in health science, but also in nutritional science, economics, business, and related fields.

If the student asks,

What do I do after I find publications about my research subject?

We might say,

Be sure to keep a careful note of all the sources and where they were found, so it will be easy to find them again if necessary. It wastes time to have to go back and look all over again for something we vaguely remember but cannot locate immediately.

The student may wish to know:

What should I do if some research articles are not available right away, and I need help from a librarian in getting access to them?

We might say,

Don’t worry, but just note down the information about these articles carefully, so it will be faster to find them again and read them.

Many students find it useful to work with a paper management system such as Mendeley or Zotero or Endnote. Please consult the Thammasat University Library webpage about these three bibliographical supports.

(All images courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)