Literature, reading skills and key words
Chapter 26
The literature review, Page 556
Reading the Existing Literature
- Start with references in bibliographies from books and journal articles and move on to using online sources for your literature review
- In some areas of research, there are very many references
- try to identify the major ones and work outwards from there
- Take good notes, including the details of the material you read
- it is infuriating to find that you forgot to record the volume number of an article you need to include in your Bibliography
- You will be able to revise and refine your research questions in the process of reviewing the literature
- A competent critical review of the literature can affirm your credibility as someone who is knowledgeable in your chosen area
Issues to Identify in the Existing Literature
- What is already known about this area?
- What concepts and theories are relevant to this area?
- What research methods and research strategies have been employed in studying this area?
- Are there any significant controversies?
- Are there any inconsistencies in findings relating to this area?
- Are there any unanswered research questions in this area?
Critical Reading Skills, Page 557
- Your literature review should be critical rather than merely descriptive, so it is worth recording relevant critical points as you take notes
- Developing a critical approach is not necessarily one of simply criticizing the work of others
- It entails moving beyond mere description and asking questions about the significance of the work:
- How does the item relate to others you have read?
- Are there any apparent strengths and deficiencies - perhaps in terms of methodology or in terms of the credibility of the conclusions drawn?
- What theoretical ideas have influenced the item?
Introductory Guidelines for Searching SSCI
You must first check that your own institution has a subscription to the ISI Web of Knowledge site at:
- When you access the site click on the Login WoK (Web of Knowledge) button in the centre of the screen
- After logging in you will be asked to choose between Full Search and Easy Search unless you are very unfamiliar with using the Internet, the former is likely to be preferable
- Once you have done this, click on Social Sciences Citation Index, at this point, you can also narrow down your search to specific years, If not your search will cover all years from 1981
- To activate your search, click on GENERAL SEARCH, the General Search window will then open
- If you are searching for references on a particular topic, insert the key word(s) in TOPIC and then click SEARCH
Developing Keywords, Page 556
To identify suitable references in online databases such as the Social Sciences Citation Index, you need to work out keywords to enter into the search engine:
- Business dictionaries (see below for online sources) can help you to define your area of research and identify changes in the language used to describe the subject:
- Collins Dictionary of Business, 2nd edition (1995)
- The IEBM Dictionary of Business and Management (1999)
- e.g., the term 'personnel management' has now been largely superseded by 'HRM' and 'payment systems' are now more widely referred to as 'reward management'
- You will also need to think of synonyms and try to match your language to that of the source you are searching
- e.g., performance management may be referred to in practitioner publications as 'employee evaluation' or 'appraisal'
Indexes of Online Business Dictionaries:
www.onelook.com/?d=all_bus&v=&sort=&langdf=all - from OneLook
www.yourdictionary.com/diction4.html#business - from yourDictionary
www.lib.uwo.ca/business/dictionaries.html#businessdictionaries - from The University of Western Ontario
Exercise: The Literature Review
Hawley College was one of many Further Education Colleges in the UK, funded by the Government's Learning and Skills Council (LSC). Well established, it had some 12000 students on average per annum, both full and part time, studying courses as diverse as business studies, hairdressing, building and computing. Its student population was mainly aged 14 to 18. It had some 300 learners studying for GCEs (aged up to 16 years) and 100 studying for GCE 'A' levels and GCE 'S' levels, (aged up to 18 years), the latter often going on to University if the grades obtained were good enough. It was the latter set of learners where Hawley faced stiff competition from other schools and 6th form colleges in the area. Its learners only gained moderate success at GCE 'A' and 'S' level, so parents in the area sought Colleges and schools which had a far better success rate. Moreover, the staff, some of many years' service, were less than enthusiastic to get 'with it'. One example was the reluctance to embrace new technology in teaching such as the use of 'PowerPoint' lecture presentations.
A change in Government policy in the early 2000's meant that Government funding became targeted at 14-18 year olds, those taking the GCE and GCE 'A' and 'S' levels. In order to take advantage of this opportunity, the College successfully bid the LSC to fund a brand new 6th Form College in 2003. The College Governors and Executive, believing that the relatively poor reputation of the current 14-18 age group provision would be detrimental to attracting the required 1500 learners to make the College viable, decided to build the new College some 2 miles away from the existing campus, giving it a catchy new name and marketing it as a separate entity. The new College would embrace the latest in technology, classroom facilities, learning resources and, above all, be attractively located in the City centre. However, there were disadvantages, not least the lack of staff car parking facilities and a paucity of teaching staff office space. The biggest threat to the vision for the new College, at least according to the College Executive, was the 'mindset' of the staff, which, in their view, would need ratcheting up a fair few notches to embrace the philosophy of the new College as an 'up market, quality' establishment. One of the many things the staff would need to embrace was new teaching technology, like the use on "PowerPoint' lecture presentations. This, and other new innovations, would be a steep learning curve for many staff.
The College decided to initiate research to examine how the College should prepare itself for the change, position itself with the new College in the market place and the appropriate accompanying staff behaviour.
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