The Structure and Format of a Literature Review Section in a Dissertation

If you have been given a dissertation writing task and you have not done it before, there is a chance that you are panicking right now as you do not know how to work on it. Writing a dissertation can be tough for many students as they have no idea what it is all about except that it is a highly researched piece of paper and their grades and degree depend on it. It is important to know that putting together a dissertation is not so tough if you take out a little time, study what it is all about and focus on the task. It can be broken down in certain sections that make writing the paper a manageable task. Along with many other sections, the literature review is a key section in the dissertation and must be written according to the structure and format that has been specified by the teacher. Being a dissertation writer, you must be ready to dedicate some time and efforts to know what it is all about and work the right way to present a top-quality paper to the teacher.

What Is The Literature Review All About?

A literature review can be best explained as the critical assessment of the literature that you have gone through and read regarding the subject and topic on which you are writing the dissertation. It is all about identifying what the text is all about and then addressing the main idea. There are many misconceptions regarding the literature review and what it is all about and how it should be written. While in some cases a dissertation can be a simple analysis of the key sources that have been used for writing the text, in some cases it requires you to analyze the content critically and comment on it.

Structure And Format Of Literature Review:

Teachers expect their students to work most critically in this section as they want them to come up with their own opinions and critiques regarding the text. It may be in the format of a standard essay made up of components like introduction, body, and conclusion and demonstrates the writer’s comprehension and grasp of the literature on the given topic. It begins with an Introduction. The introduction should provide an outline of the following:

• Why the review is being written and why it is a significant topic
• The scope of review as well as the aspects that will be discussed in the review
• The criteria that will be used for selection of literature such as type of source or range of data used
• The model of review as specified by the organization

Body and Paragraphs:

Each of the paragraphs in the body must deal with a different theme that is relevant to the topic you are dealing with.  You must synthesize several of your reviewed reading into each paragraph so there is a proper association and the content has a meaningful relation overall. In addition to this, you will also have to critically analyze each source to see how they are connected to the themes and subjects you are searching for. The body paragraphs should contain:

• Historical background
• Methodologies
• Former studies on the topic
• Mainstream as well as substitute viewpoints
• Principle questions
• Conclusions that have been drawn

Conclusion:

The conclusion must provide:

• The summary of key arguments and disagreements in the literature
• The main points for further research as deduced from this study
• The overall orientation of the topic

Checklist:

Things you must focus on for writing a literature review section:

• Have you outline the purpose and scope of writing the dissertation
• Have you distinguished the proper and required scholarly or academic literature?
• Have you recorded the details of the sources or completed the bibliography page
• Have you critically analyzed whatever you have written?
• Have you noticed any differences in the literature and the research?
• Have you checked all the methodologies, theories, hypotheses as well as models
• Have you contemplated the diverse viewpoints carefully
• Have you given a proper introduction, body, and conclusion to the review
• Have you checked the review section for any spelling, punctuation and grammatical errors

It is essential to mention the publication title, date, authors’ names, page numbers, and publisher’s name when using the data protected sources as they play a very key role in the dissertation review. The number of sources that will be used in the review depends on the type of review as well as the teacher’s instructions. You must discuss the structure and format of the literature review section before beginning to write it. This will provide you firsthand information on how it should be done and which books, journals, and reports will help you write a better one. Along with the right reading materials, the teachers will also help you work on the structure and format of the section so that you do not end up wasting time in writing drafts.