PSY 341 Research Methods: Components of a Literature Review

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The works that make up the literature review fall into three categories: 

• General theoretical literature

  • This literature establishes the importance of your topic/research.  define abstract concepts, discuss the relationships between abstract concepts, and include statistics about the problem being investigated.  Landmark and classic articles are also included.

Resources for this literature (see below):

• Encyclopedia of Criminology 

• Encyclopedia of Crime and Punishment

• Encyclopedia of Gender and Society

• International Encyclopedia of Social and Behavioral Sciences

• Your Textbooks

• GoogleScholar ​

• Literature on related topic areas
  • These sources identify general themes that run throughout the literature.  For example,  a search on the topic of student cheating will find articles on cheating and gender, cheating related to age, and cheating and academic achievement. 

Resources for this literature (see below):

• Literature specific to your research focus

  • This literature is highly relevant.  The sources isolate the issues and highlight the findings you expected when you articulated your research question or formulated your hypothesis.    

Resources for this literature (see below): 

• Note: Sources for psychological instruments are available from the Tests and Measurements Course Guide. 

Next Step: See Writing the Literature Review

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