Scientific research involves doing thorough research on the existing knowledge to come up with new ideas and conclusions. Therefore, it is always important to undertake research that is of value to our society. It ensures consistency in generating new ideas, thoughts, and opinions relevant to the situation that we are in at the moment.

Literature review in scientific research refers to when one conducts a thorough investigation of the existing scientific books. These scholarly works relate to a certain topic, critical analysis of the literary concept, doing summary analysis, etc. In a nutshell, a literature review enables the author to be familiar with the extent of the knowledge he/she has in the field.

How long should a literature review be for a research paper?

The answer is that literature review always differs from one field to another. Conducting a literature review in hard science, for instance, requires you to investigate facts, and its review entails only doing a summary of critical sources. But on the other hand, while literature review in soft science, one must look at the survey, which will provide an overview of various ideas and schools of thought and how these interconnects.

Why a literature review is important?

For instance, literature review in qualitative research is important, and the following reasons illustrate how it adds value when doing a literature review in scientific research.

  • To begin with, literature review in qualitative research, for instance, allows the researcher to identify gaps in the field. Upon identifying the available gap, the researcher will then look for information and explore it further to generate new ideas such as theories, new facts that bring more value to the knowledge of that field.
  • Also, conducting a literature review of a research article enables the researcher to interpret what has already been done and put it into a new perspective. It is crucial because the researcher will have established consistency in the field.
  • Thirdly, a literature review of a research article is important because it enables the researcher to avoid plagiarizing what other people have done. It is crucial because there are consequences of plagiarism. Therefore, there is a need for the researcher to conduct a literature review so that he/she comes up with a new perspective.
  • Moreover, the literature review of a research article is important because it enables validation of the study by providing the much-needed information to ensure relevancy and coherence on the knowledge that already exists, and the methodology used while doing the research.
  • Furthermore, literature review in scientific research also suggests an area that requires further investigation and studies to generate new knowledge to enable continuance of knowledge. It is crucial because generating new ideas and facts should be consistent.
  • Lastly, the literature review is important because it will help you identify terminologies that will greatly assist you while conducting your research. This terminology will help you understand the field you are working on hence making it easier for you to maneuver without many challenges.

Conclusion

Scientific research involves doing thorough investigations to generate new ideas. Literature review refers to conducting a thorough investigation of existing material. There is a need to always conduct a literature review while doing research. It enables you to avoid plagiarism, identify gaps that need to be filled, and so on. It is vital to conduct a literature review because we will continue to generate useful knowledge to our society and ensure that there is consistency in doing so.

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