Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

From daunting to doable in six stepsGraduate students who turn in exceptional literature reviews are recognized as excellent critical thinkers, as well as masters of academic argumentation, research writing and writing academic papers. But literature searches and composing the review itself can be intimidating and frustrating. The six-step process pioneered by this book has made the task flowing and seamless for masters and doctoral candidates in Education and related fields. This updated third edition features a wealth of all-new content including:

When you apply this system to your next literature review the work will be intuitive and enjoyable for you, and the results will impress your teachers and fellow researchers.

"The Literature Review clearly walks educators through the steps to completing a literature review with helpful checklists and graphic representations of the process. It makes a very daunting task much more manageable and systematic."Andrea M. CapizziVanderbilt University, Nashville, TN"This text is the best guide yet for our dissertation students. The format provides the learner with the framework to think about each step of the literature review process. This thorough and practical guide will provide candidates with the scholarly application that they require to think about their research."Barbara J. Poling, Interim DeanCollege of Education and Organizational Leadership, University of La Verne

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• Preface(p. xiii)
• New to This Edition(p. xiii)
• Audience(p. xiii)
• Special Features and Text Organization(p. xiv)
• Acknowledgments(p. xvii)
• About the Authors(p. xix)
• Introduction: Doing and Producing a Literature Review(p. 1)
• Getting Started(p. 1)
• Key Vocabulary(p. 1)
• Chapter Overview(p. 2)
• The Purpose of a Literature Review(p. 3)
• The Literature Review Defined(p. 5)
• The Literature Review Process(p. 5)
• Step 1 Select a Topic-Recognize and Define the Problem(p. 6)
• Step 2 Develop the Tools for Argument-Create a Process for Solving the Problem(p. 6)
• Step 3 Search the Literature-Collect and Organize the Information(p. 7)
• Step 4 Survey the Literature-Discover the Evidence and Build Findings(p. 7)
• Step 5 Critique the Literature-Draw Conclusions(p. 7)
• Step 6 Write the Review-Communicate and Evaluate the Conclusions(p. 7)
• Mindset: Personal Dispositions on Thinking, Doing, and Deciding(p. 8)
• Intellectual Dispositions(p. 9)
• Action Dispositions(p. 10)
• Decision-Making Dispositions(p. 10)
• Ethics(p. 11)
• Reflective Oversight(p. 12)
• Self-Regulation(p. 12)
• Self-Assessment(p. 12)
• Self-Correction(p. 13)
• Plan Wisely Before You Begin(p. 13)
• Tips(p. 14)
• Summary(p. 15)
• Checklist(p. 15)
• Reflective Oversight(p. 15)
• 1 Step One: Select a Topic(p. 17)
• Key Vocabulary(p. 18)
• Chapter Overview(p. 18)
• Task 1 Identifying a Subject for Study(p. 19)
• Exercises(p. 20)
• Researcher Bias, Note Well(p. 21)
• Task 2 Translating the Personal Interest or Concern Into a Research Query(p. 22)
• Activity 1 Focusing a Research Interest(p. 22)
• Activity 2 Limiting the Interest(p. 23)
• Activity 3 Selecting a Perspective(p. 24)
• Activity 4 Reflection: The Key to Interest Selection and Developing the Research Query Statement(p. 25)
• Task 3 Link the Research Query to the Appropriate Discipline(p. 27)
• Rules for Library Use: A Primer(p. 30)
• Task 4 Write the Preliminary Research Topic Statement(p. 32)
• Tips(p. 33)
• Summary(p. 34)
• Checklist(p. 34)
• Reflective Oversight(p. 35)
• 2 Step Two: Develop the Tools of Argumentation(p. 37)
• Key Vocabulary(p. 38)
• Chapter Overview(p. 38)
• Concept 1 Building the Case for a Literature Review(p. 39)
• Concept 2 Arguments-the Basics(p. 40)
• Concept 3 Evaluating the Basic Parts of an Argument(p. 41)
• Concept 4 Understanding Claims(p. 43)
• Claims(p. 43)
• Claim Acceptability(p. 46)
• Concept 5 Building Evidence(p. 47)
• Data Versus Evidence(p. 47)
• Data Quality(p. 48)
• Data Relevance(p. 49)
• Qualifying the Claim(p. 49)
• Concept 6 Warrant-Logically Connecting the Evidence to the Claim(p. 50)
• Concept 7 Complex Claims(p. 53)
• Tips(p. 55)
• Summary(p. 56)
• Checklist(p. 56)
• Reflective Oversight(p. 57)
• 3 Step Three: Search the Literature(p. 59)
• Key Vocabulary(p. 60)
• Chapter Overview(p. 60)
• Task 1 Select the Literature to Review(p. 61)
• Task 2 Conduct a Literature Search(p. 62)
• Activity 1 Managing Your Data(p. 63)
• Activity 2 Scanning the Literature(p. 65)
• Activity 3 Skimming the Literature(p. 71)
• Activity 4 Mapping Your Materials(p. 73)
• Activity 5 Creating Subject Memoranda(p. 77)
• Task 3 Refine Your Topic(p. 78)
• Tips(p. 80)
• Summary(p. 80)
• Checklist(p. 81)
• Reflective Oversight(p. 81)
• 4 Step Four: Survey the Literature(p. 83)
• Key Vocabulary(p. 84)
• Chapter Overview(p. 84)
• Task 1 Assemble the Collected Data(p. 86)
• Activity 1 Cataloging the Data(p. 86)
• Task 2 Organize the Information(p. 88)
• Activity 1 Arranging Information to Build Evidence(p. 88)
• Activity 2 Organizing the Information and Building Claims(p. 94)
• Task 3 Analyze the Patterns of the Data(p. 96)
• Complex Reasoning(p. 96)
• The Discovery Argument: Putting It All Together(p. 98)
• Building the Discovery Argument: An Example(p. 99)
• Activity 1 Mapping the Discovery Argument(p. 101)
• Activity 2 Analyzing the Argument(p. 101)
• Tips(p. 103)
• Summary(p. 104)
• Checklist(p. 104)
• Reflective Oversight(p. 105)
• 5 Step Five: Critique the Literature(p. 107)
• Key Vocabulary(p. 108)
• Chapter Overview(p. 108)
• What Is a Literature Critique?(p. 109)
• Concept 1 Making the Case for the Literature Review(p. 109)
• Concept 2 Descriptive Argument Patterns: Factual Reasoning(p. 110)
• Concept 3 Implicative Argument Patterns: Implicative Reasoning(p. 112)
• Concept 4 The Implicative Argument: Nine Basic Patterns(p. 114)
• Concept 5 Backing(p. 120)
• Doing a Critique of the Literature: Building the Advocacy Argument(p. 120)
• Task 1 Determining the Implicative Logic Pattern Inferred by the Topic of Study(p. 121)
• Task 2 Reframe Claims to Meet the Prerequisite Conditions Identified by the Selected Logic Type(p. 122)
• Task 3 Build the Advocacy Argument(p. 123)
• Building the Literature Review Case: An Example(p. 123)
• Concept 6 Fallacies(p. 127)
• Concept 7 The Case Is Everything(p. 129)
• Tips(p. 130)
• Summary(p. 130)
• Checklist(p. 130)
• Reflective Oversight(p. 131)
• 6 Step Six: Write the Review(p. 133)
• Key Vocabulary(p. 134)
• The Writing Process: Overview(p. 135)
• Task 1 Write to Understand(p. 136)
• Activity 1 Reviewing Notes and Memoranda(p. 137)
• Activity 2 Exploratory Writing(p. 137)
• Activity 3 Outlining(p. 139)
• Activity 4 Preliminary Drafting(p. 148)
• Task 2 Write to Be Understood(p. 150)
• Activity 1 Writing the First Draft(p. 150)
• Style Manuals(p. 151)
• Activity 2 Revise-Working With the Second and Third Drafts(p. 154)
• Activity 3 Completing the Final Draft(p. 155)
• Tips on Writing(p. 155)
• Last Words(p. 156)
• Glossary(p. 157)
• References and Further Reading(p. 160)
• Index(p. 161)